A Street 

Editor: This is Ambrose Poynter’s watercolour, "A Street." I'm immediately drawn to the architectural details and the warm, sepia tones. What can you tell me about the social context of a scene like this? Curator: Poynter, active in the 19th century, captured a rapidly changing urban landscape. Watercolors like this served not just as artistic exercises but as visual records of places facing modernization. Consider how the architecture speaks to different classes. What purpose did such imagery serve for the rising middle class? Editor: So, it’s about documenting a disappearing way of life, and maybe even shaping ideas about progress? Curator: Exactly! It invites us to question whose stories are being told and how visual art contributes to the narrative of urban development and social change. It's much more than just a pretty picture. Editor: I’ll definitely look at these kinds of scenes differently now. Thanks!