Do you love me? 

Editor: We're looking at Louise Bourgeois's "Do you love me?", a mixed media sculpture featuring marble and a found object. There's something deeply unsettling about the combination of the cold stone and that vulnerable, dangling leg. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I see a raw exploration of dependency and the often fraught dynamics of interpersonal relationships. The question inscribed on the stone, "Do you love me?", immediately casts the work into a space of vulnerability and the desperate need for external validation. Think about Bourgeois's history of complex family dynamics—how do you feel this piece connects with broader discourses on emotional labour, particularly for women? Editor: I guess I hadn’t really considered that, but it does make sense. The almost childlike simplicity of the question contrasted with the weight of the materials feels deliberate now, highlighting an imbalance of power. Curator: Precisely. Consider the marble – a material associated with permanence and classical sculpture – juxtaposed with the fragility implied by the isolated limb. It is about challenging power structures and traditional representations of femininity. Who holds power in this relationship? Does the ambiguity contribute to the work's strength, prompting viewers to confront their own desires for validation? Editor: It certainly does. It’s interesting how the scale and the materials initially create one impression, but then the words shift everything. It really changes the reading. Curator: That tension, that discomfort, is precisely where Bourgeois situates the viewer, challenging us to consider our own emotional landscape and societal expectations surrounding love and self-worth. I hope now you feel better informed when engaging with conceptual art in general. Editor: I definitely do. Thanks so much for your insights!