Aran 2005

Editor: So, this photograph is titled "Aran" by Sean Scully, taken in 2005. It seems to be a stone structure, maybe an old building, with blocked windows and a doorway. It gives off this feeling of solitude, or maybe even abandonment. What catches your eye when you look at this piece? Curator: The blocked windows and doorway certainly speak to that feeling of abandonment, but also of resilience. Think about what blocking a window *means*. A defense? An end to looking outward? And what of the craftsmanship of those stones – the layered history inherent in architecture. Does it look sturdy, or fragile, in its current state? Editor: It seems pretty sturdy, despite the wear. Like it's been there for ages. Almost like the stones are a record. Curator: Exactly! Stones, ruins… they're vessels of cultural memory. What do the textures, the gradations in tone, the rough-hewn blocks themselves communicate to you about the passage of time and perhaps the community that built it? Notice the wall and wild field meet. How does that boundary alter the feeling? Editor: I guess I didn’t really think of the contrast between the rugged stone wall and the soft wildflowers below. It gives it this feeling of nature reclaiming something man-made. Curator: Precisely. Think of the layers of meaning embedded in that simple contrast. This image uses a stark record to ask viewers how our presence—our memory—changes with time and in the grander scheme. Is the past something to defend, or something from which new growth can emerge? Editor: That's a completely different way of thinking about ruins than I'm used to! I was stuck on just “abandonment,” but you’ve helped me see so much more. Curator: Art has the power to do just that. Hopefully you feel like a window was unblocked in you!