Plate with Soldier on Horseback 1936

Curator: Well, hello! I’m drawn to the playful imagery, a naive aesthetic almost, but somehow imbued with...militancy? Editor: That's an interesting take! Let me provide a bit of context. What we have here is a plate dating back to 1936 by Albert Levone. It’s crafted from earthenware, a form of ceramic, and the illustration uses coloured pencil to depict, quite vividly, a soldier on horseback. Curator: 1936… such a turbulent year globally. Knowing that, the folk-art feel makes it feel almost like…propaganda. The figure’s swaggering, almost comical, yet the date underscores the rising threat of fascism. Is there any indication of how the plate would have been displayed, or its intended purpose? Editor: Dishes such as this would have had multiple potential applications. From everyday use in the home to commemorating nationalistic sentiment by displaying it in a special occasion, it would be up to its owner. Examining similar historical pieces can lend credence to what exactly this dish was created for. What looks playful to us, in retrospect, carries deeper symbolic meaning regarding political art, right? Curator: Absolutely. There’s something disquieting about seeing what almost feels like children's art mobilized towards those ends. The folksy charm juxtaposed with the martial subject matter really highlights how deeply ideology can permeate everyday life, domestic spaces. What narrative do we find beyond just political power? Editor: Perhaps the narrative touches on longing for an imagined heroic past. During that time the common narrative found in society focused on going back to former glory, usually tied to national pride and military strength. This is why there's so much charm here because we see people reaching back through generations while grappling new realities. Curator: Precisely. By juxtaposing the political rhetoric with an appeal to history, Levone encourages reflection of modern struggle while promoting nationalism to viewers, maybe subconsciously. Editor: In this moment of historical looking in combination with folk stylization, we are afforded an intimacy with past values and what that meant at the time and why. Curator: So we see both charm and tension, revealing how political and cultural memory shapes our perception of both self and society.