The Production of Palm Oil 1844

Curator: This drawing is titled "The Production of Palm Oil," created in 1844 by an anonymous artist, and held here at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It's rendered in pencil, a medium quite portable and practical for on-site documentation. Editor: Immediately, I'm struck by the contrast—the delicate, almost wistful quality of the landscape versus the implied labor. It's idyllic and unsettling all at once. Curator: I see what you mean. The landscape certainly has a softening effect, especially the depiction of the palm trees themselves. But consider this: palm oil, during that era, was a major commodity driving trade. The sketch serves as a record of that process, but the 'process' involved a system dependent on local labor. It’s there, but also distanced, filtered through a European gaze. Editor: Absolutely. I wonder about the artist's intent. Was this meant to be a straightforward record, a glorification of colonial enterprise, or something more ambivalent? And what about the intended audience back in Europe? The display, then as now, plays into an understanding of that history. Curator: And look at the range of marks – smudging to indicate smoke or distance, careful cross-hatching for texture, but all made efficiently, suggestive of needing to capture it quickly before moving on. The print likely circulated, influencing perception, shaping opinions on the global economy. Editor: It’s so interesting to think about how this one drawing functioned as part of a much larger propaganda machine. We should note also the architecture to the side and how it depicts and contextualizes daily life. I appreciate the lack of grandiosity and scale, in favor of the smaller scale. It adds to a humanizing affect within the subject. Curator: A commodity fetish, no? Beautiful landscape hiding brutal labour. This art piece provides material evidence. Editor: Precisely, a seemingly benign landscape with dark political realities underneath it. Curator: It has certainly shifted the way I consider the image’s political narrative. Editor: And it really brings home the idea that art always reflects and is affected by power. Thank you for sharing this image with me.