Inktober 2026 - 19 - Confused

A couple of people are standing, facing the same way, in one of the exhibition halls of a museum. Various pieces of modern art are distributed here and there, each stranger than the next. Some of the visitors in the group have their head tilted, others their eyes narrowed, one even has his hand to his chin. They all seem very absorbed by what they are looking at.

“I find it quite provocative,” a woman says eventually.

“You do? I think it’s quite basic, actually. The red paint is very tacky. Too aggressive, without any nuance.”

“Maybe that’s what’s so refreshing about it: how it goes back to the foundation of colour theory. Primary colours are underused, these days, and yet, red is eye-catching, brutal, transcendant.”

“Besides, you can’t argue there is a multitude of layers to this piece, can you?” another woman adds to counter the man’s opinion.

“Oh, please! This grotesque study of the human form? Round shapes for the female essence, long protuberances for the male one? It’s almost childish.”

“How about the shackling? It’s obviously there to evoke some sort of imprisonment, some forced immobility in an ever-moving world. The subject yearns to join in, it’s even bright red to get noticed, it reaches out with this part – which is evidently an arm, and not what you so crudely suggested – but somehow still remains alone, standing tall but a little sad.”

“I agree. Look at how this long black bit starts up, and then goes back down. It’s subtle, but it’s definitely there.”

“Your so called subject does not even have anything remotely close to a head. That should be the most important part, in any piece about loneliness.”

“We really can’t take you anywhere… I interpet it as an underlying message about losing one’s head. Red is also reminiscent of blood, and isolation affects the heart the most.”

“What do you make of the military subtext?” another man suddenly intervenes.

“What military subtext?!”

The man points:

“That part here looks a lot like the safety pin of a grenade. And this one there is very similar to the trigger of a gun. Not to mention the overall shape. Take a step back, you’ll see.”

She follows his advice and squints some more.

“There is also this tiny little flame, right there, on this side. Blink and you miss it. Maybe it’s about global warming after all. Some sort of warning sign, a big picture were are too close to to see clearly.”

“Interesting theory, Bella!”

They more or less all nod in some sort of agreement, until a security guard politely walks up to them:

“Ahem. Ladies and gentlemen?”

“What is it? Have we done something wrong? Have we remained here for too long? We got so absorbed in the are, you see.”

“You can stay as long as you wish in front of a piece, that’s not the issue. I simply feel I should inform you that you are looking at a fire extinguisher. The next art installation is that way.”