Curatorial notes
Curator: Mary Fedden created this striking watercolor entitled "Feather and two stones" in 2008. Editor: It has such an arresting quality. The arrangement of the objects and their clean lines evoke a childlike simplicity while radiating quiet intensity. What strikes you first about its composition? Curator: The horizontal bands give it a rigid structural organization. This is softened however by the feather’s gentle curve and the subtly mottled surfaces of the stones. A bottle, maybe oil or something similar is displayed on the left side of the watercolor artwork, next to the stones, the horizontal strips on top and down it complete the sense of rhythm throughout the piece. What significance do you read in the interplay of those forms? Editor: Feathers, cross-culturally, are tied to spirituality and lightness, messengers bridging earth and sky. Juxtaposed with the earthbound weight of the stones, it proposes an old metaphysical meditation—a balancing of the ephemeral with the corporeal. What I find odd is the inclusion of what looks like a bottle of oil to me. Curator: Notice the deliberate use of negative space, or perhaps underutilized space between those objects. Fedden subtly breaks up the grid. That little space serves to further heighten those shapes' tactile presences. The composition almost feels suspended, almost as if we, the audience, walked in to find these items in the middle of use. Editor: Absolutely. The "Sun-Stone" she includes reminds me of similar designs I have seen on ancient tribal shield symbols denoting divine guidance in the battlefield. Perhaps she also intended the objects as protective icons for some unseen quest. Curator: It might be as simple as Fedden’s experiment using compositional elements, or geometric form against organic textures. How does her limited color palette shape your view? Editor: The constrained color choices feel almost monastic in their restraint. And yes, there could have been countless complex relations that Fedden imagined when assembling these commonplace things! Curator: Indeed! It brings us to the fascinating space between abstract structure and representational forms. Editor: It is incredible to watch symbols like that become invested in an artistic piece.