Wapenschild te midden van putto's en een man met vlag 1823 - 1873

Editor: This intriguing drawing, "Wapenschild te midden van putto's en een man met vlag," is from between 1823 and 1873, by Célestin Nanteuil. It looks like a pencil drawing on paper. The combination of allegorical figures with what seems to be a laborer gives it a rather intriguing feeling. How do you read it? Curator: Let's focus on the material and its production. A pencil drawing is itself a rather democratic medium – easily accessible, cheap to produce compared to oil paints. Juxtapose this accessibility against the supposed grandness of the “wapenschild” – a coat of arms - usually associated with wealth and power. What’s the artist suggesting about access to power, about the "means of production" of that imagery? Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't thought about the accessibility of the medium in relation to the subject matter. Are you saying that the choice of pencil undermines the supposed authority of the imagery? Curator: Precisely. Consider, too, the labor implied. A pencil drawing is laborious, demanding, intensive. Compare this artisan's labor to the symbolism within. The "man with the flag," presumably a revolutionary figure. Where does his "labor" fit within Nanteuil's framework? Is it in the physical, revolutionary struggle, or a propagandistic depiction? It may well underscore the artist's questioning of established power. What might this tell us about Nanteuil’s engagement with social upheavals of his time? Editor: So you're suggesting the drawing itself is a commentary on class and revolution, cleverly hidden within an allegorical scene. I thought it was just a pretty drawing! Curator: Exactly! Materiality speaks volumes. What have we learned today, about how art history has perhaps misrepresented “high” art? Editor: I never really considered how much the very choice of material can impact meaning. Now I understand why looking closely at the medium itself matters!