VARA steekspeldje 1900 - 1982

This pin was made by VARA, a Dutch broadcasting organization with socialist origins. It's a small object, yet it speaks volumes. The design is striking: a hand gripping an arrow piercing through a circle, a stylized symbol of direction, purpose and strength. Look closely, and you can see the delicate cuts in the metalwork that create these images. The simplicity of the design and the material gives it a directness, a no-nonsense kind of feel. The cool metal invites contemplation of its potential symbolism: revolution, power, precision, and direction. Yet this artwork has a formal ambiguity. Like the paintings of Ad Reinhardt it embraces both order and chaos, reason and emotion, leaving room for your own interpretation.