House of Zandar
Malkin’s latest work entitled ‘Table of Earthly Delights’ is a collection of handmade ceramic tableware; platters, plates, bowls, cups, wine goblets, napkin rings, vases and candlesticks adorned with body parts like eyes, lips, nose, ears and fingers. Each piece is evocative of a Greek sculpture that features juxtapositions of different body parts. There are dinner plates with lips, salad plates with an ear, a water tumbler with the other ear, napkin rings with noses, wine goblets with one eye and fingers and a soup bowl with another eye. All serving platters have a pairing of the different features. The works do not have feet, in ceramics the foot of a bowl is the edge or platform carved on the bottom, but rather fingers, which are built by hand and attached to the bottom of the serving platters and wine goblets. The ceramics feature black, white, and pops of color and detailing painted in 24k bright gold and platinum.
“My work explores art history, surrealism and eclectic themes like ancient alchemy and old engravings, which gives it a spiritual and mystical undertone." - AM
The inspiration behind the ceramic tableware was the famous painting "Garden of Earthly Delights" by Hieronymus Bosch, created circa 1503-1515, and housed at Museo Del Prado in Madrid. The left panel represents paradise, the right panel is hell, and the center lies the Garden of Earthly Delights. Malkin also took her cue from life amid a pandemic with people spending more time at home cooking and showcasing their culinary skills on Instagram, as well as the fall naturescape in Aspen, Colorado where the artist is currently working and residing. The yellow and orange shades that drape like a carpet across the mountains and the patterns on the tree bark evokes eyes. Eyes are a huge fascination for Malkin who cites the work of Rene Magritte as an inspiration especially his famed Portrait of the Eye featuring an eyeball protruding from a plate.
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