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"Our first six subjects were selected
because they apply mass production to
at random just off the top of my
the aesthetics of taste."
head," recalls Robbins, who went on
The success of paint-by-numbers
to design cake decorating kits, toys
and its acquisition by other firms
and promotional materials for other
caused Robbins and his family to move
firms. "As we got more into the busi-
out of Detroit. He and his wife, Estelle,
ness, we got letters from lots of people
along with their two sons, Larry and
who were telling us exactly what they
Michael, lived in Toledo for a long
wanted to paint. All we really did was
time. With family a priority, the artist
give people what they wanted.
and his wife often return to Michigan,
"We had trends come and go. In the
visiting relatives including his sister,
early days, we couldn't do enough bal-
Ilene Silverman, and brother, Harry.
lerinas. Later on, religious subjects
With paint-by-numbers available at
became very popular. Although there's
Toys R Us, Kmart and other chain
still a basic core of people
who like the traditional
things — landscapes,
seascapes, still lifes, animals
— a lot of the business now
is licensed characters, from
Disney [standbys] to Spider
Man."
While practically every-
one who worked on the
development and early
marketing of the Craft
Master kits was Jewish,
the religious paintings
captured Christian tradi-
tions. Jewish subjects, they
determined, would not
have a large enough mar-
ket.
Larry Bird, curator of
the Division of Social
History at the
Smithsonian Institution in
Washington, D.C., per-
sonally collects the pat-
tern-based paintings and
is working toward an exhi-
bition. He attributes the
success of the craft to the
financially comfortable
time when the kits first
came into stores and the
Max Klein (19164993), owner of Palmer
high quality of the fin-
Paints and the driving:lb or behind Craft
ished picture.
Master paint-by-numbers- sets.
"The post-war years
were relatively prosperous,
and people had disposable
stores, Robbins is called upon to lec-
income and leisure," says Bird, respon-
ture about the book before different
sible for paint-by-numbers memora-
groups.
bilia amassed by Max Klein and
"We worked very hard but didn't
donated to the Smithsonian by Klein's
realize how successful we were until
daughter, Jacquelyn Schiffman. "The
many years later," says Robbins, who
four big trends [in those times] were
occasionally calls upon his watercolor
television, Scrabble, aquariums and
talents to do some realistic paintings
paint-by-numbers.
just for his personal pleasure. "There
"The Smithsonian has a really nice
are some people who like the book for
paint-by-numbers collection that
nostalgia and others who look at it as
includes paintings in various stages of
a marketing [study], an example of
processing, scrapbooks, publicity
creativity, perseverance, entrepreneur-
material and company newsletters. I
ship and risk taking — what it takes
think the pictures were well executed
to triumph." I 1
and attractive and have held up
ARTISTS
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Detroit Jewish News
6/11
1999
83