An old man with a bag of money embracing a young woman 

Jean-Baptiste Greuze made this red chalk drawing of an old man embracing a young woman, likely in France, sometime in the 1700s. The drawing's simple lines belie the potent social commentary at its heart. The man, clutching a bag of money, suggests an arranged marriage – a common practice in 18th-century France, where economic stability often trumped romantic love. Greuze often depicted such scenes to critique the moral corruption he saw within the French bourgeoisie and aristocracy. His artworks were exhibited at the Salon, which was the official art exhibition of the Académie des Beaux-Arts in Paris. These institutions shaped artistic taste, but Greuze also used them to challenge social norms. He aimed to provoke viewers into questioning the ethics of their time, particularly the commodification of love and marriage. To fully understand this drawing, one might examine period documents, such as marriage contracts, legal codes, and philosophical treatises on love and marriage. It is this interdisciplinary approach that enables us to grasp the true significance of art as a reflection of its social and institutional context.