Antoine Turgot de Saint Clair 1668

Curator: This is Antoine Masson's engraving of Antoine Turgot de Saint Clair. It’s a rather formal portrait, wouldn’t you say? Editor: Absolutely, but it also strikes me as…melancholy. Look at the weight of that wig, the way it seems to swallow his face. Curator: Wigs were serious business, status symbols! The man probably paid handsomely to project that very image of gravity. Masson, born in 1636, was a master engraver; look at the details, the textures rendered solely through line. Editor: It’s the sheer labor that fascinates me – the craft required to produce that kind of detail. And what kind of paper was he using? How was it prepared? All of these material questions shape the final image. Curator: True, it's an elaborate dance between the artist's intention, the materials, and the sitter's own ambitions, captured in a moment. Editor: Indeed. Understanding the making helps us to truly see. Curator: A glimpse not just of a man, but an era.