Another thrift store find, this time a stylized owl on a small wooden block of wood. The photos basically tell as much as I know. It’s a fun graphical and geometric interpretation on a 3D surface, primarily orange and green, stamped “122 | Made in Germany | West Berlin”. The stamp itself was unexpectedly incredibly difficult to photograph–the words kept totally washing out and I had to really adjust contrast to pull them out as much as I did. I’m sure there’s some reason for it.
I’ve found its twin in a pinned memory of an eBay auction here–I actually can’t verify that I don’t have the exact same one (there’s a forthcoming post about an item that I think I’ve tracked from my thrift store purchase back to its online auction, a cautionary tale that touches on the really depressing trade in ivory). This one from Etsy (sold) seems like it might be by the same artist/studio/company given the details of the stamp and stylistic similarities, but at 5.25″ tall, it’s significantly bigger.
I think a DIY based on this piece would make for a really fun project to get creative thinking flowing with not a ton of prep and I aim to partake at some point.
It hangs out happily in my kitchen/dining area with vintage chipped sacred heart Jesus, a kokeshi doll, two daal horses, one Chinoiserie (I think?) ceramic horse, one modern toy, and three handpainted roosters. Totally normal, right?
(Someday, two things will happen. Firstly, I won’t be relying on mid-winter, late afternoon, natural light for photos, and secondly, I’ll become a better photographer. Until then, please accept these placeholders and my apologies.)