A “grotesque” by the Dutch artist Arent van Bolten, bronze with black lacquer, c. 1610-1630.
“Kept in the Curiosities gallery, this squawking birdlike creature with a tortoiseshell back drew me instantly because of its tiny hideousness amid many other small exquisite things. It might well have been an inspiration for the artist Francis Bacon’s famous tiny-headed “screaming popes.” Let’s name him “Spitey.” We all have a creature like this living inside us. He pops up in online comments and on Twitter, when we are racist or mean to the less fortunate, whenever we lash out at those we envy. The next time you wish to be cruel, think of Spitey and clap his weird elongated beak shut.” — Heather Mallick   
