The World Beyond 

Curator: What we’re looking at here is “The World Beyond,” a coloured-pencil drawing by Remedios Varo. What strikes you first about it? Editor: Well, I find the whole scene incredibly dreamlike, with a strong focus on the peculiar boat contraption. I’m curious, what significance do you see in her specific use of colored pencil and this ship design? Curator: Excellent question. Notice how the medium of coloured pencil, a seemingly 'humble' material, is meticulously employed to render this elaborate vessel. The mechanical elements suggest an interest in engineering and alchemical processes; it appears a labor-intensive craft built perhaps for navigating more than just water. How does this craftsmanship speak to Varo’s intentions? Editor: So, it’s not just the image, but the labour behind the technique? It looks incredibly detailed for such a seemingly modest tool. Perhaps it's about elevating the status of 'craft' against 'high art'? Curator: Precisely! Varo seems interested in blurring those conventional boundaries. Consider too how the very act of constructing this image by hand mirrors the painstaking creation of the ship within the image. What about the little figures? What do they tell you about the image production? Editor: They seem like shadowy figures peering up through holes, like underworld inhabitants watching the ship pass by...Almost like we are meant to reflect on the different labor classes here. The laborers below and the possibly bourgeois explorers. Curator: A keen observation! How does considering those "underworld inhabitants" and their labour impact your understanding of the ship’s voyage, and potentially, the artist’s intentions? Editor: It adds a layer of social commentary that I initially missed, turning the fantastical journey into something more grounded and critical of how labor and materials can shape our understanding and reception of the work itself. Curator: Exactly! Paying attention to the artist’s hand, materials, and potential allusions to production reshapes our appreciation. It reveals the artist’s involvement and her intentions within societal boundaries.