“Savarin (ULAE 183)” is a work of art by Jasper Johns, an American artist known for his contributions to the Pop Art movement. This piece is representative of the figurative genre and showcases Johns’s interest in everyday objects as subjects for his art. As part of the broader Pop Art movement, “Savarin (ULAE 183)” embodies the essence of this particular period in art history by elevating a commercial and ordinary item to the status of fine art.
The artwork depicts a can of Savarin brand coffee that has been repurposed as a holder for an array of paintbrushes and other artists’ tools. It presents a study of familiar objects, with each brush and tool emerging from the can against a vivid background composed of hatched brushstrokes in a multitude of directions and colors. The background’s energetic pattern contrasts with the relatively static and solid subject in the foreground, the coffee can and brushes. Johns’s signature, which often appears in his artworks, is present as well—suggesting a link between the artist and his tools, and perhaps symbolizing the act of creation itself. The artwork is an exploration of the boundary between the utilitarian functionality of objects and their aesthetic potential when placed within an artistic context.
