Doors to Confessional 1937

Curator: Let's consider "Doors to Confessional," a drawing rendered in pencil and charcoal on paper by Ethel Dougan in 1937. Editor: My immediate impression is one of somber restraint. The palette is muted, almost monochromatic. It feels architecturally rigid, yet simultaneously decayed and vulnerable. Curator: Indeed. The drawing style evokes realism, focusing our attention on the architectural element, as well as, quite directly, its implicit role in spiritual and societal rites of confession. It reminds me of places like Alcatraz prison that operated at this same time period. There is a heaviness, both material and symbolic. Editor: The composition seems entirely built around symmetry, balanced around a firm vertical axis. This adds to the sense of confinement. Even the windows look as if it wants to contain everything inward to keep you out, making the image, ultimately, very powerful despite the relatively simple forms on the white surface. Curator: Exactly! And consider the choice of subject matter. A confessional isn't simply a door. It’s a threshold, a psychological and spiritual boundary where one navigates guilt, redemption, and the human need for absolution. Think about the significance of closed doors throughout history; of entering them voluntarily, to sit in judgement of ourselves, in an act of forced honesty? Editor: I am most fascinated by the rendering of wood texture and of decay. These choices contrast perfectly with its formal rigid structure; the piece feels at once modern and historic. The marks made on the material's surface invite us to question its origin. I wonder where these were exactly located. Curator: It pushes me to think about our impulse to reveal and conceal and to engage with those actions historically, institutionally. It prompts me to question the purpose of the threshold in the modern day, the power it carries. Editor: For me, I was first drawn into the surface characteristics; then, that led to this exploration of form and texture in conjunction. Fascinating.