The girl with the dominoes, tondo 

Curator: Here we have a painting titled "The girl with the dominoes, tondo," created by Albrecht Anker using oil paints. The artwork has a portrait style in a circle. Editor: The quiet absorption in this painting strikes me immediately. The tower of dominoes teetering... there's something wonderfully universal about childhood focus. It is nostalgic. Curator: Indeed. Anker was known for his genre scenes, often depicting children, and it is this interest which made his art so well-liked by a bourgeois public during a period where Switzerland sought a strong and distinctive national identity in education and politics. Editor: Playing the game is obviously very modern for our understanding today but the painting reminds me, aesthetically, of some earlier renaissance portraits, where we have someone engaged with everyday objects and practices as an allegorical metaphor for more philosophical virtues. Curator: I agree that we may find it in art from the Italian Renaissance; however, in Anker’s social milieu it became crucial as a tool of understanding social change as they transitioned away from a traditional past. Look at her dress, not overly ostentatious but indicative of middle-class prosperity. This painting reflects societal values placed on both domestic life and childhood innocence. Editor: Precisely, and in the context of childhood innocence the dominoes gain significance too; in a psychological sense it can mean the unfolding or ripple effect that can lead to further positive and negative results. The simple enjoyment contrasts against potential downfall. The girl teeters between two worlds! Curator: That ripple effect can certainly be seen in Anker's lasting influence on Swiss art and even beyond. This painting shows us how art captured the values of the rise of the middle class, and their values. Editor: Seeing it through that socio-political lens truly enriches our viewing, but to add that consideration to this simple image—what it brings is just endless possibilities. I now think of dominoes rather differently!