The Dancing Hours after 1778

Curator: Isn't it charming? This is "The Dancing Hours," a Wedgwood piece. Editor: It has a surprisingly festive feel for something made of jasperware. Almost like a string of porcelain paper dolls. Curator: Wedgwood was quite the material innovator, really elevating ceramics. The work is a testament to the industrialization of art. He's using a mold to create these figures, right? Editor: Precisely. Each figure, pressed from white clay, is skillfully applied to the lilac background. Think of the precision required! It democratizes art. Mass production, yet, elegant, you see? Curator: There is a tension here between the handmade and machine. Editor: Indeed. The pursuit of beauty accessible to all. Curator: I'm left wondering what the Dancing Hours thought about labor in the factory. Editor: I think you are right in highlighting the complexity, but it's hard to tell, isn't it?