Author: Steve Melcher

Dante Gabriel Rossetti, British-Italian

“Honey, Be Honest. Does This Color Wash Me Out?,” 1881

Oil on canvas

Emma Ekwall, Swedish

“You Said You Wanted Me To Bring You a Pumpernickel Bagel. You Never Said I Had To Put It on a Plate,” 1881

Oil on canvas

Jean Carolus, Belgian

“What Makes This Particular Piece So Valuable Is That It’s Not Just an Exquisite Decorative Urn, It Also Doubles As an Attractive Hydroflask,” 1880

Oil on canvas

Viktor Sieger, Austrian

“My Husband Here Built the Whole Town With His Own Bare Hands. He Was Going For Sort of a Frank Gehry Thing,” 1880

Oil on canvas

Paul Friedrich Meyerheim, German

Ursula, the Original Top-Loading Washing Machine, 1880

Watercolor and gouache on paper mounted on cardboard

Ludwig Knaus, German

“Yes Dear, That Does Seem To Be Helping With Your Body Odor Issue. But It Might Be Easier If You Just Wore Deodorant,” 1875

Oil on canvas

Frederic Leighton, British

“I Know Some People Would Probably Call This Scene ‘Idyllic.’ And I Guess It Would Be, If You Actually Enjoyed the Jazz Flute,” ca. 1880-81

Oil on canvas