Can
cute be profound? We were all young once, and painted images of a Fuzzy
Bear or a Painted Pony were important to all of us. In fact, there were
some of the first images that we encountered, befriended, embraced, and
loved. They were our trusted teachers as well, who helped us foster
personal growth and courage. A little dog could engage a child as much
as his mother. If a three-year-old fine art critic existed... what sort
of imagery would he identify with? Would it be a Cubist still life or
Land Art? A three-year-old fine art critic would most likely put a
painting of a Pink Puppy into the top ten list of the greatest works of
art. Yet, as we age, we have abandoned those soft, fuzzy creatures that
were our friends and teachers at the beginning of life. The first of
anything always maintains importance. It's called the Primacy Effect.
They set the standard and provide precedent. So, why have we abandoned
the first pictures we loved? From an adult perspective, cute can be
profound and deserves a second look.

In the present work, children's book artist Florence Sarah Winship
has depicted innocence, cuteness, and endearing adorableness in her
rounded, large-eyed subjects. It was directed at an audience of
children.
She was a commercial artist working on an assignment.
Clearly, her distinctive paintings of lovable animals dressed up as
humans were never intended to be fine art ... but perhaps in retrospect,
70 years later, they are fine art. Her paintings have their own
immediately identifiable aesthetic, and they have been overlooked in the
same way that a Bob Ross landscape has been overlooked and now
rediscovered. and now selling for $250,000. Children's book artists are
adults who paint pictures for children. Are we overlooking the obvious?
We were all children at one point. All adults were once two and
three-year-old consumers of these narratives, but we gave them up as we
aged. Return to that moment in your life and think that a yellow pony
was not profound. There is something deeply profound about a cute yellow
pony that sits in a chair like a human or a cute puppy playing the role
of a skipper.
Signed lower left, unframed, production
Board size 16.75 x 12.75 inches, unframed