Stone Doorway, Carved 1940

Hal Blakeley made this watercolor painting of a carved stone doorway sometime in the 20th century. This image raises questions about how artists and institutions engage with history. The painting depicts what seems to be an old, partially bricked-up stone doorway. It gives us the impression of something ancient, something that has been around for a long time. In its own time, this doorway would have been at the forefront of technology. It probably represented wealth, status, and power. It would have been new and shiny, in contrast to the broken-down state that Blakeley has captured. The doorway would have existed within a particular set of power structures. How does the act of painting this doorway change that? What power structures were at play when this image was made? Blakeley's painting invites us to consider these questions. A deep understanding of the artwork requires social, cultural and institutional history.