Untitled (Cockatoo and Corks) 1948

Curator: We’re looking at Joseph Cornell’s "Untitled (Cockatoo and Corks)," a mixed-media assemblage piece from 1948. Cornell frequently combined found objects and unexpected materials in his shadow boxes. Editor: It's enchanting! Like a stage set for a very peculiar play. The wooden frame gives it the feeling of an antique curiosity cabinet or even a childhood toy. There’s something magical, almost surreal, about it. Curator: Precisely! It showcases Cornell's mastery of juxtaposing the mundane and the marvelous. His assemblages are rarely paintings or sculptures, as each unique creation is usually defined as combines, constructed from diverse components and crafted through detailed, labor-intensive processes. Editor: The cockatoo seems rather regal perched amidst these peculiar cork and drawer filled compartments. It really stirs the imagination. Is this a study of nature or an odd parody of domestic space? Curator: I see Cornell's works as visual poems, with the chosen materials acting as verses in his compositions. The arrangement of these found objects and other ephemera often invites us to examine ideas around collecting, consumption, and the significance we ascribe to everyday artifacts. Editor: Cornell was known for living a somewhat hermetic life in New York. He transformed urban debris into magical worlds within those boxes. There's a sense of nostalgia and maybe longing in this piece—for places far away, for lost memories perhaps? The muted tones create a very calm mood in such a confined space, somehow expanding into vast tropical dreams... Curator: It does raise interesting ideas about space, especially confinement versus expansion of imagination, as the shadowbox structure literally confines objects whilst suggesting infinite worlds beyond. Cornell's work often plays with that push and pull of opposing materials. Editor: The materials chosen are indeed suggestive, creating layers of associations between the animal world and human objects, making it not just a joy to behold, but endlessly enriching as well. Curator: Looking at it now, I'm newly struck by its innovative blend of art and the everyday—prefiguring, in its own way, ideas later embraced by pop art, but still retaining an unmistakable personal touch. Editor: Absolutely. "Untitled (Cockatoo and Corks)" offers such a uniquely personal view into one artist’s playful world of found memories. A fascinating artifact that manages to be both grounded and whimsically airborne.