Placemat: Buttermold 117, c.1949, Two-Color, Gunmetal & Red

Object/Artifact

-

Robert Darr Wert & Country Prints

Buttermold 117 placemat in Gunmetal & Red.: Collection of Sara Leeper. Images: PKM, unless noted.
Buttermold 117 placemat in Gunmetal & Red.

Collection of Sara Leeper. Images: PKM, unless noted.

Name/Title

Placemat: Buttermold 117, c.1949, Two-Color, Gunmetal & Red

Description

A two-color silkscreen print on natural linen depicting early American carved wood buttermolds and tools used to make butter set within a design-forward free-form collage composition. The matching square napkin features butter-making tools in four panels. This design appears in c.1949 and c.1951 Country Prints packing slips, and is pictured in a 1949 NY Times article; see images. This design was produced in five colorways between c.1949 and c.1951: rust and green, chartreuse and blue, gunmetal and red, fuchsia and slate, or terra cotta and slate. Edges are straight-stitched and fringed.

Made/Created

Artist Information

Artist

Robert Darr Wert

Role

Artist

Manufacturer

Country Prints

Date made

circa 1949

Time Period

20th Century

Place

* Untyped Place

Northfield MA

Notes

Date confirmed by 1949 New York Times article; see images.

Inscription/Signature/Marks

Placemat: unsigned Napkin: “RW” in reverse on carved buttermold, and “BY HAND” on lid of buttermold.

Dimensions

Width

17 in

Depth

12 in

Material

Textile Ink, Unbleached Linen

Color

Red, Gray