Twee kinderen met een papegaai en een hond 1846 - 1853

Editor: We’re looking at "Two Children with a Parrot and a Dog," a print by Adolphe Mouilleron, created sometime between 1846 and 1853. It has a real fairytale atmosphere about it. I wonder, what do you make of this piece? Curator: This genre scene presents an interesting intersection of class, childhood, and the emerging role of pets in 19th-century bourgeois culture. How are these relationships depicted? Editor: Well, the children appear to be in some kind of interaction with the dog and bird. I would describe them as having these animals as companions, maybe playmates? Curator: Exactly. The growing prevalence of sentimental genre painting like this catered to the rising middle class, reflecting and reinforcing their values. Consider how possessing exotic animals such as a parrot and a well-groomed dog, serves as a status symbol, subtly signifying affluence. Does it seem to you like that has an influence in this work of art? Editor: It certainly seems that way. What appears initially as just a representation of innocence, becomes a display of socioeconomic status of children as well as an example of a particular time in history. Curator: Precisely. These images became powerful tools for shaping and reflecting social values, presenting idealized versions of domestic life for public consumption. I’d encourage our listeners to think about what contemporary artworks are doing something similar. Editor: I didn't expect there to be so much social commentary within the image. It's made me look at it in a different way.