Valentine 1845 - 1884

Curator: Here we have “Valentine,” an undated print on paper created sometime between 1845 and 1884. It resides here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Editor: Oh, goodness, it's like a relic from a time when declarations of love involved serious lace and an almost frightening level of commitment. I feel like I should swoon a little. Curator: Precisely! The heavy use of decorative elements signals a very specific aesthetic ideal, one deeply entrenched in the Romanticism of the period, emphasizing ornate detail and overt sentimentality. Editor: The flowers are beautiful, of course – a riot of colour against that delicate, almost ghostly backdrop, but it’s that earnest little banner at the bottom, “Constant in hope, Constant in love, Constant to thee, all others above.” Talk about pressure! Did people really live up to these declarations? Curator: That's where the work complicates its surface appeal. One must analyze how the very materiality of such tokens becomes a signifier of socio-economic status. The layered paper, the meticulous cuts, and the use of watercolours, are all elements indicating the labour and expense involved. It isn’t merely about the emotion, but its conspicuous performance. Editor: So, it’s a kind of… love peacocking? A show of how much you are willing to invest. It reminds me a bit of that heightened language we find in Shakespeare. The flowers arranged so deliberately, the lace…the overall artifice suggests perhaps love isn't quite so straightforward as the words imply. There’s performance woven in. Curator: A key observation. It prompts reflection on the complex relationship between feeling, social ritual, and economic realities inherent in these seemingly simple declarations of affection. Editor: Looking at it, I find myself thinking about what "constant" actually means in human terms. This fragile little paper suggests time and change and the vulnerability of those promises of constancy. Curator: Yes, ultimately it’s about reading the signifiers and understanding how cultural values are materialized through artistic conventions. Editor: Leaving one with a slightly melancholy sense of time passing, even amid the sweetness of Valentine wishes.