Napoleon Bonaparte c. 18th century

Editor: Here we have Francesco Bartolozzi’s rendering of Napoleon Bonaparte. The intricacies of the uniform suggest that the process was laborious. What can you tell us about the means of its production? Curator: It is the labor that defines Bartolozzi's image. Consider the engraver's painstaking work, a form of mass production for portraits of the elite. This challenges our notions of "high art" when we think about the means of circulation and the market for such images. Editor: That's a fascinating point about mass production. It really reframes how I see this image! Thanks. Curator: Indeed, materiality and circulation give artworks their cultural weight.