Anna Barlow
May today be the Day You Wished For, 2025
Ceramic
± H 23 / dia. 28 cm
"A sculpture of celebration rests on a gold cake board- its surface gilded with a single layer of gold leaf, a glitzy veneer that barely conceals the cardboard beneath. The gloss is scuffed and worn, revealing traces of past festivities once staged upon it. Food, flowers and candles sit atop this well-loved board, evoking the warmth of gathering- of family and friends- yet it remains untouched. These candles are burnt down, their wicks extinguished; the elements are about to melt and fade. Perhaps the eating was never the point. Perhaps it was the performance- the act of display itself that constituted the celebration. Now it’s quiet decay is an offering to the ephemeral beauty of celebration undone."
Anna Barlow
"A sculpture of celebration rests on a gold cake board- its surface gilded with a single layer of gold leaf, a glitzy veneer that barely conceals the cardboard beneath. The gloss is scuffed and worn, revealing traces of past festivities once staged upon it. Food, flowers and candles sit atop this well-loved board, evoking the warmth of gathering- of family and friends- yet it remains untouched. These candles are burnt down, their wicks extinguished; the elements are about to melt and fade. Perhaps the eating was never the point. Perhaps it was the performance- the act of display itself that constituted the celebration. Now it’s quiet decay is an offering to the ephemeral beauty of celebration undone."
Anna Barlow
Signed
Copyright The Artist