Watch c. 1816 - 1820

Editor: So this is "Watch," made around 1816 to 1820 by Vacheron Chossat & Compagnie, primarily of gold and other metals. It looks quite intricate and delicate. How would you begin to approach analysing it? Curator: Well, considering its materiality, this gold watch is less about aesthetic beauty and more about the power dynamics at play. How was the gold sourced? Who were the labourers involved in mining and refining this precious metal? The 'portrait' style nods at a Neoclassical context. Editor: So, thinking about its construction...the watch represents luxury, and its existence relies on extraction and skilled craftmanship? Curator: Exactly! Examine the object not just as a timepiece, but as a testament to labor practices of the time, challenging distinctions between 'high art' and craft. We have the artisan’s labor embedded in every gear, every precisely engraved surface, wouldn’t you say? Editor: That’s a perspective I hadn’t fully considered. What about its function? Did owning this represent a sort of temporal control? Curator: Absolutely, who could afford such luxury? It signals not just wealth but mastery over time itself. Think about how the industrial revolution changed the value of time. Consider the consumption it fueled: materials, labor, even status. This isn't just a functional item, it is charged by these historical production forces. Editor: So much is implied just by this little object. This materialist approach really opens it up. Curator: Indeed. It pushes us to consider the whole network of creation and consumption. Editor: I'll never look at decorative arts the same way!