Flexure of the Head

Jeanne Silverthorne has long used rubber as a primary material. This sculpture is one of many in which the artist recreates the idea of a painting by placing a rubber “canvas” in an ornate rubber frame. Her work often addresses the theme of vanitas, a contemplation of the temporality of life. In this case, the artist’s material is well suited, as rubber becomes increasingly fragile over time. The oval form is enigmatic, defying easy identification. Are the creases and folds meant to represent fabric, perhaps clothing or bedding? Are they meant to suggest creases of skin? Either of those interpretations seems to suggest a connection to the human body. And yet, the bright orange color disrupts that thinking, instead recalling the vibrant colors we are more likely to associate with flowers, fruits, or wild animals—subjects no less susceptible to the passage of time.