Apotheosis of Classical Divinities 18th-19th century

Editor: This is "Apotheosis of Classical Divinities," an ink and pen drawing by Giuliano Traballesi, created sometime in the 18th or 19th century. It's really quite stunning! It makes me think of another era of great empires. What's your read of the drawing? Curator: I see the work of the artist’s hand, of course – the hatching marks building form out of what were at first shapeless forms in a page of rough linen pulp. Ink, and perhaps the fixative glues holding its particulate form, create the depth we recognize in these figures from another place. But beyond this vision of powerful divinity, I can not ignore the role labor plays in making this work. Someone prepared the ink, tended to the fires. How are we meant to think of this labor, obscured but undeniably present, when faced with this subject? Editor: That’s fascinating. I hadn’t really considered the physical creation of the work so much. You mean, what does it *mean* that this drawing came from manual work? Curator: Exactly. In focusing on the making, the means of production so to speak, we are forced to recognize a potential friction between the supposed lofty subject matter, and the quotidian activities—materials sourced, the artisan paid–required to create it. How might that friction alter our view of both? Editor: That makes me think differently about the classicism on display, and even its style. It also feels grounded, somehow, now. Thank you! Curator: And thank you for reminding me to not let the materiality get lost. The work of interpretation is unending, I think, with new tools brought to old forms revealing yet another new vantage.