Apron, Biscuits, Crisco

Signed print of original oil painting reproduced onto Epson cold press paper. This is an acid-free, 100% cotton rag media with a bright, mildly-textured matte finish. Arrives unframed. Allow up to 10 days for order processing.

The original painting can be purchased here.

Earlier this year on one of my antique junkets, I spotted a vintage Crisco can and couldn’t leave without it. When I got home I started researching and I discovered it was post-war era. What struck me most, beyond the age of it, was how beautiful it was. Decorative details, like the tiny stars on a light blue background, looked more like a piece of fabric from the 1940s than a kitchen staple. There’s even a cake recipe printed on it.

My background in commercial design means I notice things like typography and product design and what they can tell us about history. The lettering on that Crisco tin, the phrase on the milk bottle, these details aren’t incidental to my paintings, they’re part of the story. I actively look for objects that carry that kind of designed beauty, because it tells us something about the era. There is intention behind the object’s design, function, and economic influence.

And my theory on the tin: in the post-war era, women were slowly becoming the primary decision-makers for household purchases, and manufacturers responded by developing more aesthetically competitve packaging. Even though the economic outlook at this time was optimistic, values from the post depresion era remained. The frugality mindset also meant that a beautiful tin was expected to outlive its original contents entirely, becoming a sewing box, a recipe holder, a keepsake on a pantry shelf. That Crisco tin was designed to be chosen, displayed, and kept. And here we are, nearly a century later. It worked.

The blue apron with its pink trim, the glass milk bottle, all chosen for this painting to honor that same domestic world, where ordinary things were made with care because the women keeping those kitchens deserved nothing less.

And then there were the biscuits.

Due to health reasons, I’m gluten and dairy free, which means that when I needed fresh biscuits for my still life reference photo, I did my best. The result was what can only be described as anemic hockey pucks. Pale, dense, and nothing remotely resembling a flaky buttermilk biscuit hot from the oven! Though they were sufficient in giving me spatial reference, I painted the biscuits you see in the painting entirely from imagination; the way I believe they should look. Despite the baking fiasco, I think the painted ones turned out just fine. What do you think?

Click on web image to see the whole print.

Size: Print 12" x 12" on 14" X 14" paper. There is a one inch white paper border around the artwork.

Shipping: $12.00 or contact me to obtain a coupon code for free local pick up in Naples, NY. Also, please contact me for international shipping options prior to purchase.