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HOW THE PAINT-BY-NUMBERS INVENTOR INSPIRED AMERICANS TO PAINT

America had “paint by numbers” before Bob Ross, a recreation that applied the idea of a coloring book to canvas. Whenever it gained popularity in the 1950s, it swept the nation and opened up paintings to millions of Americans who might never have otherwise picked up a paintbrush. Paint-by-numbers packages were mocked by artistic critics for their packaging, which brazenly asserted “every man a Rembrandt.”

However, even though painting by numbers was a significant cultural phenomenon of the mid-twentieth century and is still a well-liked activity nowadays, its deceased creator is virtually unknown. Do check out foto malen nach zahlen

Originally in the 1950s, corporate artist and ardent Sunday painter Dan Robbins invented paint-by-numbers packages. He began his career laboring for H.B. Stubbs Co., a General Electric subcontractor headquartered in Detroit that created the renowned “Motorama” shows at the Chicago Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago. Additionally, he produced calligraphy for inner flip charts and inspirational materials for Chevrolet’s faculty of arts.

Robbins’ first big break, however, came as a result of his 1949 transfer to Palmer Show Card Paint Company. Max Klein, the firm’s creator, had set Robbins a goal: to distribute more paint. Paint by numbers was his answer. The activity took use of the American public’s increased spare time after the war.

The Americans found time and resources to dedicate to pastimes after the war, and a rapidly expanding economy improved their standard of living.

Robbins’ idea was simple: a package that any person could use to create a meticulous painting, regardless if they’ve never attended an art class. He came up with a method to streamline the procedure using his understanding of how to overlay and arrange colors to create a comprehensible composition. He created an original piece of art before assembling each kit. Then, he covered it with a plastic sheet, outlining its designs and shapes and giving each one a number and accompanying color. Paint by numbers was developed as a result.

The very first paint-by-numbers kit Robbins suggested to Klein, titled Abstract No. One was a satire of the Abstract Expressionist trend of the time. However, abstractions proved to be much less commercially successful than landscapes, still life, and figuration, and also the paint company swiftly shifted its focus to something more conventional. Prominent kits included names like The Bullfighter, Mt. Matterhorn, and Fishermen. Certain kits for novices might well have featured 20 colors, while those for more qualified professionals might give 30 to 40. Several were more difficult than the others, giving more adventurous enthusiasts room to improve. The lure worked, and 20 million paint-by-numbers packages were purchased by Americans in 1955 alone, filling homes throughout the nation with shoddy artwork. Other opinions on the thriving hobby have been less favorable. I do not even know what America is heading to when millions of people, a large number of adults, are willing to be forced into brushing paint on a jigsaw miscellany of mandated patterns and doing so by rote, one unidentified reviewer remarked in American Art with a heated rant on the other side of the debate.

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