Scalloped Sculpture Garden 2012

Curator: Arlene Shechet's "Scalloped Sculpture Garden" presents us with a miniature world, its dimensions a modest 11 1/2 by 11 1/2 inches. What springs to mind for you? Editor: I'm immediately struck by its almost lunar quality. The mottled grays and blues give it a desolate, otherworldly feel. Curator: Absolutely. Shechet's work often grapples with the intersection of history and the present, pushing against traditional notions of feminine craft. Considering the title, how does "garden" function as a metaphor? Editor: It reclaims a space often associated with the domestic sphere and elevates it. The materiality – the fired clay, the glaze – speaks to labor, to the transformation of raw materials. The process becomes part of the narrative. Curator: Precisely. Shechet is inviting us to reconsider our relationship with the materials and the narratives they hold. Editor: It’s a challenge, and a beautiful, unsettling one. Curator: Indeed, a small world sparking larger reflections.