Curatorial notes
These two display cabinets were rendered anonymously using graphic techniques. The designs come from a time when industrialization was changing domestic life, and new objects were being made available for the home. The cabinets reflect a culture of display and the rise of consumerism, when possessing and showing off decorative items became a marker of status. There's a tension here, though, because these beautiful things are for the home, which has historically been seen as the realm of women. It's interesting to consider how gender and class intersect in the design and function of these objects. The cabinets speak to a desire for order and refinement, yet they also hint at the intimate stories held within the objects they contain, and the identities of those who chose to display them.
