The Doll (Maquette for The Doll's Games) 1938

Editor: So, here we have Hans Bellmer’s "The Doll (Maquette for The Doll's Games)," created in 1938. It feels…unsettling. The disjointed figure, that peculiar rug beater hanging in the foreground – there’s a dreamlike, but vaguely menacing, quality to it all. What do you make of it? Curator: Ah, yes, Bellmer. He's rummaging through the attic of the subconscious, wouldn't you agree? For me, this piece breathes that pre-war anxiety, a world on the precipice. Look at how the doll is pieced together – an unsettling commentary, perhaps, on fractured identities, or even a world coming apart. It's playfully perverse. Does the rug-beater read like an instrument of domesticity or something far more sinister in the scene to you? Editor: I can see that. It almost feels like the rug-beater could become an instrument of torture. But there’s something innocent about dolls, and the pastels, almost childlike. Is Bellmer juxtaposing these qualities to create tension? Curator: Precisely! It's this uncomfortable dance between the innocent and the grotesque. He challenges us to look beyond societal facades, to confront hidden desires and fears. He had an intriguing obsession, after all. Where do you think his motivations lie, when we consider the political context? Editor: I see the dualism now, that he invites a sense of intrigue with some playfulness, but beneath the surface something dark is there. Thanks so much! Curator: My pleasure. And next time you see a doll, perhaps you'll look at it a little differently!