Bell Jar

"Bell Jar" was created during the height of the pandemic lockdown. The sculpture embodies a revealing intersection between sculpture, literary reference, psychology, and commentary on the experience of physical, emotional, and mental isolation. 

The work consists of a three-dimensional line-drawn house, crafted from 3/4 inch steel bar. The open space of the house walls, floor, and ceiling simultaneously portrays transparency and confinement. The house becomes a bell jar sitting on top of a 1/2-inch sheet of glass. Inside the house, windows and a doorway lay in a pile. In the realm of psychology, house drawings are associated with the self and windows and doors represent access and interaction with the world. The embodiment of the house - solid, yet minimalistic - stands as a symbol of domesticity and safety. In the form of a bell jar separating the windows and a door from the structure, the image becomes symbolic of confinement. 

The sculpture’s title is a nod to Sylvia Plath's novel "The Bell Jar" dealing with a woman’s emotional struggle trapped under the metaphorical bell jar of depression and societal expectations. "Bell Jar" the sculpture, similarly presents a compelling critique on lived experiences of confinement, mental health, and societal pressures. An ordinary house serves as a multifaceted icon, allowing for layered interpretations of the interior life subjected to the exterior gaze.