Drie goddelijke deugden geloof en hoop en liefde 1741 - 1745

Editor: Here we have Giovanni Domenico Tiepolo's "The Three Divine Virtues: Faith, Hope, and Charity," created between 1741 and 1745. It’s an engraving, done in very fine lines. The figures are quite striking; it’s a complex scene. How do you see the materials influencing the message here? Curator: What stands out is the tension between the relative ease of producing a print and the labor invested in creating the image. The fine lines speak to immense skill, which then reproduces and disseminates ideology. This piece shows faith, hope, and charity through figuration; but what’s the *work* of faith, the production of hope, the materials that comprise the practice of charity? The labor required to produce such items is easily forgotten within the smooth lines. Editor: So you're saying the print, as a multiple, sort of hides the initial labor? Curator: Exactly. This makes one question whether this seemingly divine, certainly *immaterial* tableau benefits the material needs of its viewer or, instead, obfuscates their understanding. Editor: That makes a lot of sense. I never really thought about how the materials used in art could affect how we understand its message, but I will now. Curator: Indeed, and think of who can *access* this material versus, say, a painting only one patron could possess. What sort of economic realities produce each?