Teapot Lady

Scott R. Gray | Seattle, WA
Teapot Lady, 1994
Paperclay with cloth body, mohair, glass, silk,
brass trimmed aluminum teakettle
26" high
A costume designer for the Seattle Children’s Theater, Gray mocks our nostalgia for contemporary historic dolls. The juxtaposition of the Teapot Lady’s elaborate rococo costume and powdered disdainful face with the aluminum spout that juts out from under her skirts is Gray’s tribute to false modesty. The implicit gender ambiguity suggests the hollow nature of our longing for the past. Authenticity is a subjective notion and memory is a social construction shaped by our current needs.