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The Renaissance Artist
A duck wearing a beret and paint-splattered smock, holding a tiny palette and brush. Novelty duck for art lovers.
Specifications
| Material | Vinyl (PVC) body, felt beret, printed paint-splatter smock |
|---|---|
| Dimensions | 3.5 x 3.4 x 3.7 in |
| Weight | 2.2 oz |
| Color | Yellow body, black beret, white smock with multicolor paint print |
| Age Grade | 3+ years |
| Origin | Designed on Vashon Island, WA · Assembled overseas |
| Care Instructions | Spot clean beret only. Paint splatter is a printed pattern and will not transfer. |
The Full Story
The Renaissance Artist was designed by committee, a phrase that in most corporate settings is a warning sign and in this specific case is simply an accurate description of what happened, because the paint splatter pattern printed on every smock was democratically voted on by the entire design department after four separate designers submitted competing splatter mockups and nobody could agree which was best.
The palette held in one wing includes six paint colors, each one matched, with more seriousness than the project probably called for, to actual pigment names used by professional oil painters, a detail that a design director insisted on after reading a library book about Renaissance-era pigment sourcing and refusing to let the reference go. We are told the blue is technically closest to something called "Prussian blue," a fact that has come up in exactly zero customer inquiries but that we remain quietly proud of.
An earlier prototype included a tiny detachable canvas the duck could "paint," but this was cut after prototype testing revealed the canvas piece was, predictably, immediately lost by every single test household within about four days.
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Customer Reviews
The paint splatter print looks genuinely hand done even though I know it's printed. Lovely little piece for anyone with an art background.
Gave this to my daughter's art teacher as an end of year gift, she thought it was very sweet and appropriate.
No notes, does what it says on the box.
Small nitpick but the felt beret is a bit snug and doesn't sit quite flush, leaves a small gap at the back. Doesn't ruin the piece, just an observation.
I run a small community art studio and bought one of these for our supply shelf as a joke. It has since become something of an unofficial mascot, students pose it next to their work for photos. Did not expect a rubber duck to become part of our creative culture but here we are.
Was hoping for a little easel piece to go with it based on how I imagined the description. It's just the duck with a palette and brush, no easel included. My mistake for assuming, but wanted to mention it.