Henry Carey (1596–1661), Second Earl of Monmouth 1649

Curator: This miniature portrait of Henry Carey, Second Earl of Monmouth, was painted by Samuel Cooper around 1649. He really captures that turbulent period of English history, doesn’t he? Editor: Yes, an immediate melancholy strikes me. The soft light seems to be mourning, and the dark background, it amplifies the feeling of loss. It’s an intimate, almost fragile object. What strikes you about it? Curator: I think it's how Cooper balances the grandeur expected of a portrait with this amazing sense of intimacy. The filigree frame feels so personal, like a locket holding a precious memory. Editor: Absolutely. Frames dictate viewing so much. It reminds me that Carey was writing about resisting the overwhelming events of his time in his translations of Giovanni Boccaccio’s writings and commentary. The plague, the monarchy in disarray…He presents himself, cloaked yet vulnerable. He lived through some catastrophic history. Curator: And you can sense it, can't you? Despite all the finery, it feels like a glimpse into a soul searching for stability. It reminds me of holding a found bird – so delicate and somehow deeply wise. Editor: The execution, too, feels incredibly prescient. Cooper situates Carey in this moment of history – we see through his writings and this visual document how power begins to be contested in ways that continue today. This isn't just about Carey as an individual; it reflects an epochal shift. The portrait offers this complex web to be untangled. Curator: I love how a simple miniature, seemingly just an object of its time, can actually become a mirror reflecting our own struggles with change and loss. Art, after all, is never really just about then; it always somehow becomes about now. Editor: Right. And sometimes, I think the greatest activist act is one of sustained reflection in turbulent times. Seeing this miniature helps me think about that—how our quietest moments of art viewing may inspire future action.