Cereal Mascot Rhyta
This series reimagines the ancient rhyton through the lens of American breakfast culture and the mythmaking of commercial mascots. As a child, brand-name cereal was a rare delight. Each box, a promise of sugary escape and the suspense of discovering the hidden toy buried like treasure. Sometimes I waited for the surprise to emerge naturally; other times I went elbow deep in that box, sending cereal flying in a desperate race against my siblings to claim the prize. The commercials were just as enchanting: serialized cartoon adventures that built a universe around these characters, elevating them into icons of American pop culture.
Toucan Sam, 2024
Copper, brass mount, display base
13 x 5 x 7.5" - rhyton
13 x 5.5 x 10" - with display base
Tony the Tiger, 2024
Copper, brass mount, display base
12.5 x 5.25 x 8.25" - rhyton
12.5 x 5.5 x 10.5" - with display base
Cap’n Crunch, 2024
Copper, brass mount, display base
11 x 4 x 7" - rhyton
11 x 5.5 x 9.5” - with display base
In Cereal Mascot Rhyta, I explore how these figures; Cap’n Crunch, Tony the Tiger, Toucan Sam, and Count Chocula function as modern mythic symbols. Adorning horn-shaped pouring vessels inspired by ancient ceremonial rhyta, these mascots transform the familiar ritual of breakfast into an act of playful reverence. The vessels invoke the gravity of a historical ceremony while humorously questioning the idea of “Breakfast: the most important meal of the day.” Through sculptural form and nostalgic imagery, the series examines how childhood marketing, ritual behavior, and cultural storytelling intertwine within one of the most mundane daily acts: pouring milk into a bowl of cereal.
Count Chocula, 2025
Copper, brass mount, display base
- rhyton
14 x 5.5 x 14" - with display base
