Alchemist's Arcade

Comment

Comment by Resident Curator on October 22, 2011 at 9:08am

Curator’s Comment:

 

Alchemist’s Arcade is a sweet assemblage, well constructed and crafted.  I enjoy the inverse relationships between the centralized forms- the brass oil can points up to, interrupts and intrudes on the convex circular object (ceramic lid?).  Ordinary elements are transmuted and held together with vibrant color and texture.  But there is also an artful dissonance as the entire structure perches on the dual small feet of game tiles.  The entire piece could topple with the roll of the ornamental die.  The back view allows me to see and appreciate the symmetry of the handles, which also appear disproportionally oversized for the delicate box structure.  I’m unsure of the text in the interior.  It seems to function more as texture than text- and so I wonder if I’m missing something integral to the narrative, or if it’s a purely decorative motif.  I also see an inherent irony to the Alchemist reference, as the gold which is to be transformed never rises to the status of the substance that gleams or glitters. Hopefully I’ll see more of your work on the site.