Reign 

Curator: Okay, let’s dive in. Editor: So, this is "Reign" by Scott Fraser, created with oil paint. I'm struck by the chaotic energy, the sense of a still life being disrupted. What do you see in this piece? Curator: What strikes me is how Fraser subverts the traditional vanitas. Vanitas paintings were meant to remind viewers of the transience of life and the futility of earthly pleasures. Here, though, the familiar symbols - the skull, the tea set - are actively under attack. The arrows represent a violent interruption, a disruption of domestic tranquility and perhaps, more broadly, societal norms. Editor: Disruption in what sense? Curator: Think about it. What narratives are typically associated with domestic spaces, especially in Western art history? Traditionally, it’s a space coded as feminine. But, these arrows, piercing through that constructed calm, introduce a more aggressive, perhaps masculine energy. Are we seeing a critique of power structures encroaching upon traditionally feminized spaces? Or is it a more personal reckoning, where an internal battle is being externalized in a very confined location. What do you think about the arrows targeting things like the teacup and pastry? Editor: It’s almost like the rituals and comforts are under siege. The photo in the suitcase under the table–I don't think I recognize the sitter. And I wonder, who is under attack and from who? It's quite political...I think? Curator: Exactly. Who does that portrait represent? It could be an ancestral connection, and the collapse of time and progress is just a new narrative being unfolded that challenges what we are comfortable and used to! The “attack” suggests conflict but also, transformation. We can engage the conversation on the politics and identities of it all, while embracing our own perspectives of how it feels, where it sits, and how it lands in each and every single one of our personal encounters. What's transformed for you after encountering this painting? Editor: I see a lot more conflict now, whereas at first glance I saw disruption. It's like, what appears peaceful on the surface can be, at any moment, overturned. Curator: I couldn't have said it better myself. Every item, the domestic object and person captured in time and memory, has the right to be recontextualized under attack. This artist truly created a thought provoking image!