Untitled (picking tea leaves) c. 1870s - 1880s

Curator: What strikes me immediately is the stillness, despite the action of tea picking. There’s a posed quality, a constructed serenity. Editor: Yes, this hand-colored albumen print, attributed to Raimund von Stillfried, likely taken sometime in the late 19th century, shows women picking tea leaves. Look at the woven baskets, the textiles of the kimonos; it speaks to a certain material reality, doesn't it? Curator: Absolutely. The kimonos, for instance, become signifiers themselves. The colors, the patterns might tell us something about status, about the roles these women play, both in the tea production and within a social hierarchy. Editor: And the labor! Imagine the hours, the meticulous work involved. The image aestheticizes it, of course. But, the actual processes and materials are critical to understand the piece. Curator: I see the gesture toward the symbolic weight of the tea ceremony itself, a ritual imbued with meaning beyond just a simple act of consumption. The image invites us to reflect on how everyday acts are laden with cultural significance. Editor: I agree. And it reminds us that, even in art, the means of production are never truly absent. Curator: Indeed, both the seen and unseen shape our experience. Editor: Yes, seeing this has given me a new appreciation for the work involved in my morning tea.