Francesco Bonatti, Mantuan Lawyer [obverse] c. 1510

Curator: Let’s spend some time with this bronze relief, dating back to about 1510. It’s titled "Francesco Bonatti, Mantuan Lawyer [obverse]". Editor: Immediately, I'm struck by the austerity of it all. The cold bronze, the profile's unwavering gaze—it's so very… determined. Do you feel it too? Curator: I do. There's a definite air of Renaissance stoicism about Bonatti. But there's something tender here as well, a very precise sculpting. Look at how his hair curls so delicately. Someone took immense care. This would've involved mastery of metalworking, investment casting, all to memorialize…a lawyer! Editor: Precisely! It speaks to the status and patronage systems of the time, doesn't it? Bonatti's importance justified the expense, the labor of skilled artisans translating societal value into palpable form. And look at the lettering. Each stroke of the chisel precise. Who designed and created the dies, I wonder, and what was their payment? Curator: Good questions. I imagine it wasn't the sort of glory afforded to, say, Michelangelo. Yet there's a power to the medium, something enduring, immortal even. Think of how that bronze survives. It reminds us that art is labor, shaped through physical interaction, but sometimes transcends the earthly toil, yes? It has become a reflection of humanity—and that’s magical. Editor: Agreed! And considering bronze's inherent recyclability—melt it down, recast it into something new!—the image, Bonatti's essence, perseveres. A potent testament to the enduring power dynamics of labor and material in immortalizing… a lawyer. It almost makes one chuckle. Curator: He wouldn't be laughing along! It has opened up so much for us to explore with that single raised surface, hasn't it? The man, the age, the art, the making! Editor: Indeed. It really shows you how much of what you’re looking at lies beneath what you see.