Schaal met putti die het deksel optillen 1764

Editor: This is "Schaal met putti die het deksel optillen," a pen and ink drawing from 1764 by Benigno Bossi, held here at the Rijksmuseum. I find the combination of the rigid geometric form of the urn with the soft, almost fleshy putti oddly compelling. What strikes you about it? Curator: The drawing is ostensibly a representation of an object, but consider its production. Ink and pen, tools readily available, transform into an elaborate artifice mimicking sculpted stone. What social class do you think had access to items such as this? Editor: Given the Neoclassical style and detail, I would guess a wealthy patron class. They seem like luxury goods. Curator: Exactly. And this drawing? A simulacrum consumed perhaps by those who desired association with that class, or by the artisans themselves to disseminate style and method. It served to distribute the symbolic power inherent in material wealth to a wider audience through a cheaper, more easily made version. Note how the labor of production, the hand of the artist meticulously rendering form, elevates the craft of drawing. It's no longer just about representation. Editor: So you’re saying it's not just a picture of an urn, it's a comment on the whole system of luxury and access. It blurs the lines between art and craft and reveals something about social mobility. Curator: Precisely. It's the commodification of artistry made accessible on paper. Reflect on the skilled labor it embodies; this work presents the material world, but it is, at its core, an idea. Editor: I never thought about it that way! I was so focused on the image itself, I missed the context of how it was made, distributed, and consumed. Thanks for helping me understand it better. Curator: My pleasure. Art's materiality, production, and audience are crucial to understanding its impact, wouldn't you say?