Wall Bracket (Eccleasiastical) 1939

Editor: This is Edward Jewett's "Wall Bracket (Ecclesiastical)" from 1939, a mixed-media piece that seems to blend drawing and watercolour. The palette feels oddly calming, a soft peach against this muted green. What do you see in this piece that I might be missing? Curator: Oh, this bracket sings to me of architectural daydreams! I see a gentle geometry trying to hold up a forgotten memory. The pastels are a tender wink to the past, while the crisp lines hint at Modernism's utopian leanings. Makes you wonder what kind of sacred space this bracket was destined for, doesn't it? Or is it Jewett’s playful deconstruction of sacred space and ornament? Editor: A deconstruction, you say? I was stuck on the formal elements and didn't consider it critically at all. Curator: Yes! It’s a delightful conundrum! Jewett's clearly been studying historical ornament, but then applies these almost candied colors and flattens it all out. And given it was done in 1939, it’s also hard not to think about the looming war and a longing for simpler times, perhaps expressed here through familiar, if not fantasized, architectural elements. Does that resonate? Editor: It does now. So much for just seeing pretty colours! There’s a lot more to it. Curator: Absolutely! And isn’t that the magic of art? It lures you in with its beauty and then whispers its secrets if you lean in close enough. It invites you to think and rethink your position, not unlike a good bracket! Editor: Right, supporting the weight of perspective! I like that. Thanks for opening my eyes to the nuance!