This "ladies" pocket knife was used up to the late 1900's by influential and "well off" ladies, not only as a fashion statement but as a practical tool when away from the kitchen/home to peel fruit and provide a cutting instrument for small items. It was a method to show the growing independence of women to skillfully process food away from the home and kitchen. The use of such a small compact knife could also have been used by male cigar smokers (docking the end of the cigar)This "lady's "purse" knife was a demonstration of the growing independence of women in Australia and especially in rural areas up to the 1940's. The two World Wars provided the opportunity for women to take over what was traditionally "men's work". This evolution of women's equality in society brought changes to what the traditional role of rural women had been entrenched from first colonisation of Australia. The use of such a small compact knife could also have been used by male cigar smokers (docking the end of the cigar). This method of preparation of a good cigar would have been used by wealthy property owners or men of "class"This small one blade knife (lady's) has an "ivory" body containing one small blade. Horizontal lines in "off white" appearance run from one end to the other. One end has a "U" fitting(to provide an anchorage for a chain). This small knife could also have been used by male cigar smokers.ladies pocket knife, small knives, traveller's cutting implements

With a career spanning over 30 years as a painter, Stieg Persson is a well known figure within the Australian and international art world. Persson’s work is celebrated for his distinct (yet eclectic) style, which consists of elements associated with abstraction, figuration and decorative art, as well as the artist’s deeply intellectual interrogation of Australian culture and society. In this work titled, Duck and quail eggs, Italian herbs, Persson reflects on contemporary parallels in changes of taste and the desire for decadence as a political and social drive. Inspired by Brighton’s iconic Church and Bay Streets, the artist addresses the social currency of luxury and high-end cuisine by depicting rococo style blackboards which offer the latest in fine dining, alcohol, exercise classes, skin treatments and lavish linens. Persson is presenting a subtle critique of the contemporary obsession with food; as contemporary society places greater significance on the connoisseurship of eating, it does so in lieu of engagement with culture as it is traditionally conceived (music, theatre, literature and art).oil on linenstieg persson, brighton, signage, graffiti, food, chalkboard, bayside, painting