The Gift – two views of the same object is inspired by Man Ray’s surrealist object of the same title Cadeau (Fr. gift). Dower has recreated the iconic artwork with everyday objects, an old flat iron and carpet tacks, found in his parent’s house in Aberdeen and produced an edition of silkscreen prints that present the found object from two alternate views:
"My mother was given an old iron by an old family friend when she was 6 years old. For as long as I can remember this iron lived on the floor of the guest room.
One day looking at it closely, I realised it was very similar to the iron used by the artist Man Ray for his surrealist object ‘The Gift’.
Seeing the old iron in a new light, and with fresh eyes, I placed it on the mantle piece of the guest room where, in my mind, it had become an art object. The next time I visited my parents the iron was back on the floor."
- Raydale Dower, 2017
This is a diptych comprising of two separate prints and was made for the opening of the worm.
Paper Size: 74.5 x 56 cm each
Medium: Screenprint
Edition Size: 25
Year: 2017