Two of Cups 1751

Curator: Here at the Minneapolis Institute of Art, we have a playing card from 1751, titled “Two of Cups,” printed by Claude Burdel. It’s an engraving. What do you think of it? Editor: Well, I find the symmetry visually appealing. The mirroring of the cups and other symbols creates a sense of balance, almost a rigid formality, despite the playful nature of a card game. The colours are stark but oddly harmonious. Curator: It’s fascinating to consider the printing process itself. Each card was likely hand-colored, demanding skilled labor. Imagine the repetition involved in producing decks for entertainment, considering also the availability and cost of such decks, and consequently who they would have been available to! Editor: Yes, I see the socio-economic aspect. But what I immediately latch onto is the semiotics. The cups themselves signify emotion and relationships. And their arrangement implies some interplay between parties. Curator: Given the era, the materials – the paper, the inks – were produced under specific conditions and subject to availability. Studying those resources helps illuminate the social history tied to these cards. The type of pigments they could afford speaks volumes about their position within the social hierarchy of Marseilles. Editor: From my point of view, each of these shapes works within a system that, once deciphered, offers insights into the collective conscious of its era. The way each emblem is placed in the picture gives significance, too: crowns, foliage and intertwined forms enhance the sense of harmony I observed, but might also communicate societal ambitions of nobility and aristocracy! Curator: Indeed. And examining these images as commodities reveals societal values concerning work, leisure, and luxury during that period. These cards tell stories about the production methods of leisure items, including its impact and economic background, making it valuable material for socio-economic studies. Editor: I appreciate that perspective, seeing the art as embedded in material culture. Considering my formal analysis, and how those structural decisions reflect broader intellectual currents in eighteenth-century design, gives me chills. Curator: Absolutely! It allows us to examine this piece both aesthetically, from an intellectual background of symbolic association, and practically, as a record of labor and economics. Editor: A remarkable convergence. Thanks for sharing your perspectives, that gives a good idea on the artwork as a whole.