Brief aan Filippo Tessaro Possibly 1891 - 1896

This is a letter written by Jozef Israëls to Filippo Tessaro, dated April 6, 189-something, crafted with ink on paper. Here, the material is quite ordinary: paper, derived from processed wood pulp, and ink, an industrial product allowing thoughts to be captured and shared. Yet, the letter itself speaks volumes. It represents an act of communication, facilitated by both the physical act of handwriting and the postal system. The flow of information, now instantaneous, was once reliant on the labor of many, from paper production to the physical transport of the letter itself. The letter is not just a message; it's a document of a specific social and economic context, in which the act of writing and sending a letter was a tangible, labor-intensive process. Considering this context, the letter transcends its simple materials, inviting reflection on the changing nature of communication, labor, and our relationship to the objects that mediate our connections.