Cast Iron Balcony Rail c. 1936

Curator: Here we have "Cast Iron Balcony Rail," a drawing from around 1936. The piece renders a section of architectural detail in light pencil work on what appears to be toned paper. Editor: My first impression is that it looks like a memory. Not fully fleshed out, a suggestion of wrought iron, shadows hinted at. Did you ever get the feeling you are about to recall an idea fully only for it to dissapear as you are about to embrace it. Curator: Yes, precisely, or like a blueprint not quite ready for the foundry floor. I think its power comes from how it marries a focus on the craft traditions involved with the geometric patterns of mass-produced design. This speaks to broader artistic conversations that blur the lines between industry and fine art. Editor: Industrial lace, almost. The ironwork feels so delicate rendered in pencil. There's also this quality of almost melancholy to it. Are these buildings a record? About to disappear as we observe this? Were these the railings to the artist's residence? Curator: That's an astute observation. Iron, though ostensibly sturdy, carries significant associations with labor—from mining and smelting to the crafting of ornamental work and in this work this labour is reduced in to the act of repetition, that is a skill the artist captures effectively.. Perhaps that's what lends it that air of fragility you perceive. What appears strong on the one hand depends entirely on labour that is also so transient. Editor: And even within that labor, this balance of hand craftsmanship vs the emerging world of automated or efficient design. What’s saved and what’s lost in the transition? One also cannot ignore the tension inherent between protection and imprisonnent? That which keeps safe, is also responsible for isolation. Curator: Precisely. That tension speaks volumes. The iron, the design, and even the drawing medium combine to form a poignant narrative around architecture. And yes it prompts that constant reflection and interpretation about architecture as both expression and artifact. Editor: Looking at it again I wonder if its being so unfinished suggests the memory will persist and return. Thanks. Curator: Yes indeed, a beautiful memory made accessible by metal, and an act of documentation, if that doesn't sound to cold, Thank you.