The Deliverance of Buanoconti 1807

Curator: What strikes me first about John Flaxman's "The Deliverance of Buonaconti" is its ethereal quality. It's as if a dream is captured in delicate lines. Editor: The first thing that I notice is its apparent lack of materiality: the thinness of the line, and the whiteness of the background: it's all surface. Curator: The illustration evokes a sense of weightlessness, doesn't it? The angel almost seems to float off the page, cradling Buonaconti, ascending away from a grotesque figure. Editor: Yes, but look closer. The printing process itself, the etching on the metal plate, the pressure applied to transfer the image to paper: all very physical. And the paper itself, its quality, its production, tells a story of its own, doesn’t it? Curator: I suppose. Though it makes me consider the symbolism of redemption, of escaping the earthly coil. The economy of line adds to the emotional intensity. Editor: Indeed. It almost seems paradoxical when you consider the labor-intensive, repetitive aspect of printmaking at this time. And the cost of the paper, the ink... all that speaks to a very different kind of experience of the artwork. Curator: Perhaps it's the contrast of form and content that makes this piece so compelling, even now. Editor: I agree. It makes me think about how the means of production can sometimes belie the message.