[title not known] 1833

Editor: This sketch, from the British School, depicts a view of Delhi Fort. It’s a simple pencil drawing, but the architectural detail is fascinating. What stands out to you about the way this was made? Curator: The focus on the fort's construction highlights the materiality of power. Notice the repetitive, almost industrial, rendering of the ramparts. What does that repetitive mark-making suggest about labor and the creation of such structures? Editor: It does emphasize the sheer amount of work that went into building it. A single person would have spent years just making bricks. Curator: Precisely. And how does this relate to the larger context of British colonial influence, do you think? Editor: I hadn’t thought of that, but it is interesting to consider the fort as both a symbol of power and a product of intense labor, especially within that historical dynamic. Thanks!