For her Two Alcoves Joining (Grey Iron Edition i.c.w. Emma Scully), Nel Verbeke reinterpreted the historical and transcultural notion of the alcove as a place for spiritual retreat, arriving at two freestanding niches united by a metal band. The concise but sculptural volume, which functions both as a vase and as a bell jar, depending on how you position it, interrupts the usual dynamics in a room and installs an evocative focal point – a mental refuge that absorbs and quiets our gaze and thoughts. In this, the transparency of the glass and the distinctive surface and tone of the sand cast metal each play their own role, either hiding or revealing what is preserved in between them.