The Sculpture

‘Siren’ is a sculpture constructed from a collection of trunks, ship parts and an old record player which features the 1955 hit single ‘Stowaway’ by Barbara Lyon. From this collection of simple and recyled objects, Dobrowolski has created a particularly poetic work of art dealing with the maritime theme. The title ‘Siren’ asks us to think about Homers Odyssey, and the adventures of Odysseus. We begin then to think about the female singer whose song attracts us to engage with the sculpture. Are we to imagine packing these trunks to seek our fortune? Where might the next ship leaving port take us? Are we to be shipwrecked? Or, if we begin to think about who did in fact pack these trunks; what became of them? how many stories does Hull have to tell as a major port?

This is what makes Chris Dobrowlski’s sculpture such a successful work; it starts making us think on many levels without offering simple answers. We are left wondering the answers to many of our questions; as we are also left wondering about the many ‘old seadog’ tales which remain untold.

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Curator's description of Siren What does the Curator like about this work? How does Siren relate to the Ferens' collection?

 

Learning article provided by: Ferens Art Gallery, Hull

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