AA-2026-5A3C44
On the image
Wearing a jacket and tie to sell cold drinks from a folding table in a public park, this young vendor has dressed for a job interview rather than a summer afternoon in the shade. That was the standard expectation in 1950s Europe: the distinction between working and lounging was expressed entirely through clothing, and a man who appeared behind a commercial table in shirtsleeves would have been telling the world something unflattering about himself.
The table is a careful argument for abundance — straw-wrapped Chianti fiaschi stacked in pyramids, red-capped soda bottles, rolls, and a row of amber drinks lined up with the seriousness of a pharmacy display. The wooden crate to the side bears lettering that reads BIRRA, confirming the beer-and-wine-and-fizzy-drink logic of the continental park kiosk, where the assumption was that a person on a bench deserved the same range of options as a person at a café, just without the chairs.
Behind him, a woman rests her chin on her hand with the expression of someone who has been at this stall since early morning and has formed an accurate estimate of how many more customers will come. He smiles at the camera. She does not.
Visually related — by likeness
Park Refreshment Stall, Vendor with Chianti Flasks and Sodas, Europe, 1950s. 1950–1959. Archive & Atlas, Historical Image Library, AA-2026-5A3C44. https://thearchive.archiveandatlas.com/library/park-refreshment-stall-vendor-with-chianti-flasks-and-sodas-europe-1950s.
@misc{aaAA20265A3C44,
title = {Park Refreshment Stall, Vendor with Chianti Flasks and Sodas, Europe, 1950s},
year = {1950–1959},
howpublished = {Archive \& Atlas, Historical Image Library},
note = {Accession AA-2026-5A3C44},
url = {https://thearchive.archiveandatlas.com/library/park-refreshment-stall-vendor-with-chianti-flasks-and-sodas-europe-1950s}
}TY - ART TI - Park Refreshment Stall, Vendor with Chianti Flasks and Sodas, Europe, 1950s PY - 1950–1959 PB - Archive & Atlas, Historical Image Library AN - AA-2026-5A3C44 UR - https://thearchive.archiveandatlas.com/library/park-refreshment-stall-vendor-with-chianti-flasks-and-sodas-europe-1950s ER -
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