Poisoned Caress

Year : 2022
Dimension : 15 × 22 × 5 cm(Height × Length × Depth
Weight : 230 grams
Edition Size : Unique piece
Artist : Mahmood Rafati
Material : : Burnt wood, colored beads, natural fibers
Technique : : Mixed media assemblage

Description: This sculpture metaphorically reflects concealed violence veiled in affection and deception. A bent wooden figure lies facing a heart-shaped array of colorful beads—suggesting not love, but injury and illusion.

This sculpture embodies a profound contrast between surface calm and hidden threat. A curved, fragile wooden form reaches toward something beautiful and colorful — a heart made of bright beads. But this beauty is seductive, not sincere; behind it lies the suggestion of harm, deception, and quiet danger.

Poisoned Caress speaks of violence that enters not with a blade, but with a smile. Of betrayal wrapped in softness. It warns us that not all tenderness is safe — some of it disarms, deceives, and ultimately wounds.

The sculpture does not scream. It folds in on itself. But through its silence, it whispers a hard truth: sometimes the gentlest touch is the most deadly