West India Brigs 1927

Editor: Here we have Philip Little's "West India Brigs," created in 1927. It's an etching, and I'm struck by how the dark silhouettes of the ships against the lighter background create a sense of drama and perhaps even a bit of foreboding. What strikes you about this print? Curator: Well, immediately I think about the labor involved in producing an etching like this in the 1920s. The artist had to have skill in the material processes but also in capturing the scene to life, but what kind of social conditions is Little representing with the image of sailing ships, which evokes a bygone era? Editor: I suppose these ships signal a kind of global commerce or perhaps maritime exploration, which also involved colonial expansion at that time? Curator: Precisely. We see these beautiful vessels, but we should ask about the exchange of materials and goods between the West Indies and elsewhere. Little is depicting ships; what were the sailors doing onboard, and how does the print invite you to question these global circuits and networks of labour and exchange? Editor: That’s a very different way of seeing it. I was caught up in the aesthetic qualities and almost forgot to think about the world outside the image. It sounds like this print is connected to a much larger, global picture, a material picture. Curator: Exactly! By paying attention to how it was made, the materials, and what it depicts, we can use it to understand bigger economic systems. These 'West India Brigs' carried not just goods but also the legacies of labor exploitation and environmental impact across the seas. Editor: This perspective really broadens my view. I'm seeing it now not just as a pretty landscape, but as a document loaded with implications. Curator: Yes, considering how the image, as a product of etching, relates to production and trade in the world offers an enriched encounter with the art.