Balinese Girl with Child 

Editor: This drawing is by Miguel Covarrubias, titled "Balinese Girl with Child", and it’s done in pencil. I’m struck by the simple lines, yet how much it conveys – strength, motherhood, and a sense of place. What do you make of it? Curator: This piece speaks volumes about cultural representation and the artist’s gaze. Covarrubias was deeply interested in Bali and its culture in the 1930s, a time of increasing Western fascination with the region. How does this sketch function as both a personal observation and a projection of Western desires onto Balinese women? Editor: That's interesting, because I just saw a portrait of a mother and child. But it is a pencil sketch – how would a quick drawing like this function politically? Curator: Consider its potential circulation. This wasn't created in a vacuum. Even a seemingly simple drawing could be reproduced in travel publications or exhibited, shaping perceptions of Balinese culture for a Western audience. It taps into exoticized tropes prevalent at the time. Do you see any signs of idealization, or perhaps ethnographic curiosity? Editor: I see your point. I suppose the idealized form and the child on her back speaks to a Western fantasy of exotic motherhood. It raises some uncomfortable questions. Curator: Precisely! It's about acknowledging the power dynamics at play when artists represent other cultures and the public that consume that work. Editor: Wow, I never would have considered the layers of socio-political context in such a simple sketch. Thank you. Curator: It's a good reminder that art is never created in isolation, but always engages with a broader cultural and historical landscape.