Bedcover c. 1780s

Curator: Oh, look at this, a bedcover from around the 1780s, currently residing here at The Art Institute of Chicago. It’s quite something, isn't it? Editor: It’s so stark. I'm getting an overwhelming sense of… intensity, a relentless black and white pattern marching across what was presumably a place of rest. There’s nothing soft or inviting about that. Curator: Precisely! The bedcover presents a fascinating tableau, especially given its intimate setting. It's textile work, featuring monochrome prints – detailed scenes within circular frames connected by elaborate ribbons and bows. Think narrative-art meeting genre-painting all over a sleeping surface. Editor: Narrative seems… restrained. More like surveillance, tiny scenes playing out with these frames containing them like specimens. There are beheadings! Curator: Yes, the prints themselves appear to depict episodes – perhaps from historical events or morality plays – but rendered for domestic consumption. They tell a story, although the story's sequence when transferred on to the textile loses its temporality. The vignettes lose coherence with each other to convey the drama. And the black and white prints make everything so clear cut. The material would not hide even the slightest indiscretion beneath the covers. Editor: This cover forces you to stay awake, doesn't it? I almost feel a compulsion to analyze the whole composition. I see order in its repeating units and the use of contrast, but also unease as all the narratives repeat. It’s like history as insomnia. Curator: The maker created it to bring public events into a private realm. You are close enough to these figures to know their secrets. Sleeping under these eyes feels almost blasphemous as dreams escape through open windows of perception. Editor: A very long, intensely public nightmare… stitched together on a bed. How disturbing. Curator: Precisely the contrast makes you pause and think that what you think will give comfort brings anything but restful thoughts. Editor: Okay, now I need something with kittens to cleanse my palate.