Theme & Variation Decorative Plate #122 (Clown) 

Editor: Here we have Fornasetti’s "Theme & Variation Decorative Plate #122 (Clown)", created using mixed media and ceramics. I find the juxtaposition of the black and white portrait with the gilded clown makeup both striking and unsettling. How would you interpret this piece? Curator: Well, the clown, historically, has been a potent symbol, hasn't it? Think about the ancient fool – often the only one permitted to speak truth to power. This image plays with that duality – the gilded ornamentation against the slightly faded, almost melancholic face. Fornasetti gives us a face laden with cultural baggage, doesn’t he? Editor: Cultural baggage? In what sense? Curator: In that we can't help but project our own associations onto the image. Consider, the "clown" can be celebratory or sinister depending on your own psychological framework and the cultural moment. The tears under the eyes are particularly resonant, perhaps reflecting hidden sorrows masked by performance. Don’t you agree? Editor: Absolutely, it definitely resonates with the idea of concealing one’s true emotions. Does the 'Theme & Variation' title imply this hiding is a constant and adaptable process? Curator: Exactly! Fornasetti has produced many of these plates – it is about seeing continuity across forms, revealing universal truths through this consistent framework. He prompts us to consider the varying emotional guises we all adopt in our daily lives. Editor: So, it's a mirror reflecting our own emotional masks. I’m starting to see how powerfully such a seemingly simple decorative piece can convey such psychological complexity. Curator: Indeed. And that intersection between the personal and the symbolic makes it such a compelling and lasting work.