Standing Man in Exotic Dress 1765 - 1810

Curator: This drawing, titled "Standing Man in Exotic Dress" by Jakob Matthias Schmutzer, created sometime between 1765 and 1810, is really interesting. I’m struck by the details in the fabric; it feels like you could almost reach out and touch it. What are your initial thoughts? Editor: It's amazing how much detail Schmutzer achieved using just dry media on paper. The shading really does give the fabric a tactile quality, especially in the folds of his sleeves. What do you see in this piece? Curator: For me, it all comes down to production. Think about the paper, the ink, even the artist’s clothing as he made this. These materials were produced, traded, and consumed. How did these material realities shape the work? Is this image depicting actual "exotic" clothes, or just the *idea* of exotic dress circulating within a particular European market of goods and desires? Editor: That’s a fascinating point about the “idea” of exotic dress and the market! So, are you suggesting the artist is participating in and perhaps even commenting on the European fascination with other cultures through the very *materiality* of the work? Curator: Precisely. The paper itself might have been chosen for its quality and texture, suggesting an intention to create a valuable object. The drawing becomes evidence of consumption and cultural exchange, doesn't it? Does that add another layer to this artwork for you? Editor: It definitely does! I was initially just thinking about the aesthetics, but framing it within the context of trade, material consumption, and the “exotic” gives it so much more depth. I never really considered that even art supplies have a social history embedded within them. Curator: And thinking through the artist’s labor in making the work really situates art as something produced, and not just something created out of inspiration. Editor: This makes me think differently about all the art from this period; the materials tell their own story! Thanks!