Valentine 1845 - 1875

Curator: What immediately strikes me is the incredibly intricate craftsmanship. The "Valentine," made sometime between 1845 and 1875, is a marvel of paper cutwork and applied prints, attributed to an anonymous maker. Editor: It has an ephemeral, dreamlike quality. The colors are faded and muted, like a cherished memory, and those carefully placed symbols—the angel, the doves—create a potent image of enduring love and faith. Curator: Exactly! It’s a testament to the skills involved. Each cut and perforation had to be deliberate. This object suggests a community where such specialized craft was not only possible but perhaps even valued as a form of personal expression. This Valentine straddles high art and folk tradition. The very process is central to its meaning, don’t you think? Editor: Oh, without question! But those repeating motifs… the bird with its obvious associations with peace and the soul ascending, or the classical figure kneeling beside what looks like a book – likely meant to evoke themes of literacy or even bible reading – this object carries weighty expectations and hopes from the giver to the receiver. Curator: How was it even circulated? A complex layered network from raw materials to dissemination emerges: paper mills, printers, peddlers. Also consider how these delicate items survived over time! The consumption involved is immense and impacts my appreciation. Editor: You are certainly bringing the worldliness back into the object. The layered materials serve more than structural function though, as the superimposition grants the angel a powerful dimension of transcendence – this humble handmade token whispers not just of romantic infatuation but a much grander concept of everlasting devotion. Curator: Fascinating, absolutely. It forces us to consider who was creating and receiving it—were they part of an increasingly consumer-driven culture that nonetheless valued handcrafted sentiments? It provokes so many socioeconomic questions. Editor: Questions well-suited to its status, tucked between secular and spiritual, commercial and handmade. It holds secrets only whispered in symbolism, urging viewers toward quiet reflection. Curator: Yes, and it showcases that within that quiet devotion lay evidence of tremendous human work, creativity, and commerce—bound together through this now delicate artifact. Editor: It's astonishing how it carries so many meanings despite its small scale and somewhat anonymous making.