Head on a Plate 5 (Blue Couple) 2012

Editor: Here we have Arlene Shechet’s "Head on a Plate 5 (Blue Couple)," a ceramic sculpture. It's so simple, yet unsettling. The title implies a macabre narrative, but the execution feels delicate, even domestic. How do you interpret this work? Curator: Ah, yes! The tension between domesticity and the slightly disturbing is key. For me, it evokes childhood memories of elaborate tea parties gone slightly awry, a kind of innocent decadence. Shechet often plays with these kinds of juxtapositions, doesn't she? It makes you wonder about the stories we tell ourselves. Editor: That’s a lovely perspective. I initially saw a formal exploration of shape, but your take on childhood nostalgia makes the piece even richer. Curator: That's the beauty of art, isn't it? It can hold so many stories.