Clotho Spinning c. 1809

Editor: Here we have Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres's sketch, "Clotho Spinning," housed at the Harvard Art Museums. It’s quite small, and the pencil lines are so delicate. What strikes me is the stark contrast between the refined classical subject and the evident labor implied by the act of spinning. What do you make of it? Curator: I'm drawn to the means of production. Ingres, in depicting Clotho, engages with the history of craft and labor. The act of spinning, traditionally a domestic, often female task, here gains a monumental quality. How does this elevate, or perhaps, comment on the social value of labor? Editor: So, it's not just a classical figure, but a commentary on the work behind creation itself? That’s insightful! Curator: Precisely. Ingres, through his choice of subject and his own labor in creating this piece, prompts us to consider the material conditions and social context of art making itself.