Bowl c. 1948

Editor: So, this is Serge Nekrassoff's "Bowl," crafted around 1948. It looks like it's made of some kind of metal. The way the ridges spiral from the center outward is quite striking. What catches your eye when you look at this piece? Curator: Well, first, let’s acknowledge the labour involved. Look at the hammered texture, and the tooling marks visible. This isn’t some mass-produced object; it’s clear a craftsman dedicated time and skill to shape the metal. And then there’s the material itself. Metal, in the postwar period, takes on new significance. We see a boom in industrial production alongside artists taking an interest in metal for its potential to suggest themes like innovation and the impact of mechanization. What do you make of the spiral form? Editor: It gives the bowl a sense of movement. It almost looks like something organic, like a stylized flower, even though the material is industrial. Is that a tension Nekrassoff might have been playing with? Curator: Precisely. He seems interested in how traditional forms intersect with the potentials of a postwar material and its process. Bowls have historically been functional, domestic objects; Nekrassoff elevates it through technique. He encourages us to rethink assumptions around utilitarian objects. Are those labor processes properly valued or celebrated? Editor: I never thought about a bowl in terms of labour. This gives me a lot to think about, from production to function. Curator: It highlights how the artistic interpretation of something so quotidian reflects broader industrial processes.