Untitled 2016

Editor: This watercolor painting from 2016 is simply called "Untitled" by Kinder Album, and it depicts two figures in an interior bedroom scene. One woman is standing on another! I’m struck by the slightly unsettling tension between the figures. What do you see in this piece? Curator: What jumps out to me is how this piece, even with its unsettling aspects, continues traditions of intimate interior scenes, especially those explored by women artists. Consider, for example, how the flattened perspective and domestic setting echo some of the strategies of artists like Mary Cassatt or even, in a more charged way, the provocative use of the nude by someone like Alice Neel. The woman standing over the other, what sort of power dynamics do you suppose that establishes for the viewer? Editor: Power dynamics is interesting, and honestly uncomfortable. Is it supposed to challenge us, given the history you mentioned? Like, it looks deliberately… staged, somehow. Curator: Precisely. And who is doing the staging, that's my question. Watercolors tend to offer softer narratives but here the image conveys a stark scene that resists the typical male gaze that historical painting traditions had produced. Think about how art institutions might have responded to this work at different points in history. Today, what sociopolitical contexts do you see influencing its interpretation? Editor: I see how today, this could be viewed through a feminist lens, looking at female relationships and power structures… or, in a negative way if the artworld thought of this piece only in terms of sexual fetish, like you described. So interesting that context and reception can so radically alter the value and interpretation. Curator: Exactly. Considering the forces around production allows us to ask even bigger questions. This image prompts discussions around representation, power, and the very role of art itself. Editor: I hadn't thought about it that deeply. Thanks for sharing such interesting background about visual culture, power, and the context for interpretation!