Doll c. 1936

Here is Kapousouz's watercolor sketch, depicting a doll dressed in a light-colored gown and hat. The hat, a disc of woven material, sits prominently atop the doll's head. Across cultures, the hat has been a symbol of status, identity, and transformation. We see its echoes in the elaborate headwear of ancient Egyptian royalty, or the feathered headdresses of indigenous American cultures. It is interesting to observe how the hat, as an object, has transitioned from practical use to powerful symbol across various historical and cultural contexts. Consider the carnival, a space of symbolic inversion, where one dons a hat or mask to become someone else. In psychoanalytic terms, the hat may represent a form of disguise, a means of concealing or revealing aspects of the self. The hat touches something deep within us. As it reemerges, it embodies our collective aspirations and fears, our continuous striving for transformation and self-expression.