Tobacco box 1725 - 1750

Editor: This is a baroque tobacco box by C. Vos, dating from 1725 to 1750. It's currently housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The starkness of the black and white image lends the piece a formal, almost austere mood, despite the ornate details. What jumps out at you when you look at it? Curator: My eye is immediately drawn to the inherent contradictions within this object. A tobacco box, seemingly innocuous, yet intimately tied to the vast colonial systems of trade and exploitation that defined the 18th century. Consider for a moment: who was C. Vos? Who commissioned this piece? Who did it serve, and at what cost to others involved in the supply chain for tobacco? Editor: That’s… a much deeper reading than I was expecting! I was just thinking about the craftsmanship. Curator: But isn’t craftsmanship itself imbued with meaning? Think about the resources, the labour – enslaved or otherwise – needed to produce both the box and its contents. How does this knowledge alter your perception of its “beauty?” This isn't simply about appreciating Baroque style; it’s about acknowledging the silenced histories embedded within it. Does that change how you perceive the box now? Editor: It does. I mean, I see the ornate details in a new light now. What seemed purely decorative before now feels…loaded. It makes you wonder who profited, and who suffered, from its existence. Curator: Exactly! And that is the crucial first step to decolonizing our understanding of art history. Editor: Thanks! I have a lot to think about.