Homecoming c. 19th century

Editor: This little drawing, "Homecoming," by an imitator of Adrian Ludwig Richter, feels so festive! It's hard to ignore the labor and craft evident in the etching. What's your take on it? Curator: Notice how the artist, or rather, the imitator, painstakingly recreates a specific social performance, the welcoming celebration. It reveals the artist's role as a manufacturer of culture, and we might ask, what are they selling here? Editor: So, you see it as a commentary on cultural production? Curator: Exactly. The "homecoming" itself becomes a commodity, mediated by the artist's labor. It makes me wonder about the conditions of the artist’s production – was this commissioned? Editor: That's a perspective I hadn't considered. It shifts the focus from the sentimental scene to the economics of art. Curator: Indeed. It’s a reminder that art doesn’t exist in a vacuum.