The dove n.º 1

Context: in The dove n.º 1, Hilma turns the heart into a symbol of duality. A single form able to hold two opposing forces without either one disappearing.

Interpretation: in our version red and gold do not compete for space, because each colour only makes sense in relation to the other. The small circle above acts as origin, and the link joining it to the heart repeats that gesture of connection between two planes that runs through the artist's work, reinforced by its colour halves, as though something were descending from the sky to take on a body here on earth.

Technique: the earring is our way of speaking about reconciliation: two different halves that do not cancel each other out but hold each other up. And the same idea is reinforced by how it is worn — remove the upper piece and the heart becomes an earring of its own, a single half that also stands alone.

Source: The dove, n.º 1, Group IX, Series SUW/SW, 1915.