Laura Zinkan is a writer in California. She cultivates a gardening site at http://www.theGardenPages.com with plant profiles, growing tips about succulents and native plants. She also cooks up http://www.MomsRetro.com where you can find retro art and kitchen tips for busy cooks. 2009 by Laura Zinkan. Article may be reprinted if author credit is given with a website link. All rights reserved.
Beautiful, funny and sometimes racy, fruit and vegetable labels were created to catch the eye of American consumers in the produce department. Beginning in the late 1800's farmers and merchants used artwork of colorful fruits and exotic vegetables to entice customers into buying their product. Before becoming available as framed art, some cooks framed their favorite labels and hung them in kitchens and restaurants. Today labels are collected for their beauty and are exhibited at museums around the Untied States.
Some early can labels even had gold foil and used expensive embossed papers. Larger labels, known as crate labels were glued to the ends of produce crates as they were shipped out of the fields to market. Artist created sun drenched landscapes and used bright colors to make their produce stand out. Drawing on the romance of the Old West, some brands had names like Bronco, Western Queen and Majestic.
Gods and royalty are represented in vintage stone lithograph labels against dramatic landscapes. On one advertising label, Triton the sea god sits on a cliff overlooking the ocean in Washington state. In other art, glowing oranges are set against romantic sunsets and bright red strawberries tumble over a serene California farmland. Giant artichokes floating over choppy seas and tomato ranches grace other labels. Visit http://www.MomsRetro.com to see examples of more retro crate label art.
Today, vintage crate label artwork is still found in modern kitchens except it is kept on the wall. This early form of advertising art is perfect for the kitchen and adds a retro touch of home to offices. And it just might help us to remember to eat our apple a day.
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