Dumbbell of Crotullum 1938

Curator: Standing before us is "Dumbbell of Crotullum," a rather curious drawing by Ethel Dougan, dating back to 1938. Editor: It feels almost like an architectural rendering... Or some odd sort of ladder leaning in space? What's your read on the symbolism here? Curator: Ethel used a combination of watercolor and drawing, resulting in such a delicate rendition of this weightlifting device! To your point: maybe we are thinking of this object in an abstract form to understand its importance, the dumbbell itself seems rather like the rungs of a ladder. A way to help support ourselves, our ideas... the development of strength as an incremental upward climb. Editor: Yes! Ladders are about reaching something higher, right? Physical prowess, social standing. The way the dumbbell is drawn seems almost deliberately…deconstructed. As if to suggest even the best equipment might be rendered impotent, by any fallibility in the user. And I’m wondering if it also reflects the time in which this artwork was produced: an awareness, on some level, of looming pre-war vulnerability? Curator: An astute observation! Perhaps the apparent fragility of the rendering plays into that sentiment of vulnerability that echoes from that era. Also, the ladder imagery resonates! One is perhaps on a precipice ready to tumble, with the ever growing tension of pending violence in the upcoming war… Editor: And to go on a whimsical route, it makes me think that it is maybe meant to resemble xylophone...like an instrument to perform something... and our muscles are always performing movements for our inner stage, whether we lift this object or anything. Curator: Haha I see a xylophone too...or an archaic telephone switchboard! Well I hadn’t imagined this instrument of strength performing in such diverse, imaginative, ways when I first saw it. I wonder what secrets lie beneath its surface? Editor: True that! An artist like Ethel gives us more questions than answers... Which is what makes diving into art history such a compelling endeavor.