Harp c. 1787 - 1790

Curator: This elegant instrument is a harp created by Cousineau Père et Fils, sometime between 1787 and 1790. It's currently held here at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Editor: The ornamentation immediately grabs you, doesn't it? It feels intensely aristocratic. Every surface seems designed to shimmer, to catch light. Curator: Precisely. It's an embodiment of Rococo aesthetics, that lightness of touch and devotion to embellishment. The materials tell a story themselves: metal, wood, and what appears to be gouache paint. Each contributes to the harp's opulent character. There is a history of patronage inherent in its making, whispering of aristocratic salons and commissioned craftsmanship. Editor: That layering of craft is really key here, isn’t it? The harp isn't just an instrument for producing sounds; it’s a status symbol crafted by specialized workshops. It brings up questions of labor conditions, specialized knowledge, the price of the materials - how many trees did it take, and where were they from? Curator: Indeed. Harps had strong associations in France. Marie Antoinette herself played, furthering the instrument's image as graceful and cultured. In iconographic terms, the harp is deeply tied to the mythological figure of Apollo, god of music and poetry, often featured as a symbol of harmony, order, and enlightenment ideals. Do you find those ideals communicated by the artwork itself? Editor: To me, it represents an incredible expenditure of resources, of course, and therefore has always suggested something more like entrenched class division. Harmony, yes, but at what cost? I'm interested in how this object existed in real, lived spaces – the echoes of a specific workshop with very particular material conditions of manufacturing, trade, consumption. Curator: I can see your point, absolutely. But it’s important to acknowledge how embedded symbols are within these contexts. Musical instruments throughout history frequently represent more than simple aesthetics and are enmeshed with social and cultural identities. Editor: And, well, thinking about that Rococo style as representative of class divides provides further context about who had the means, material resources, and connections to commission pieces like this in the first place. That brings a crucial counterpoint to all the initial beauty. Curator: Food for thought indeed! An artifact rich in symbolic and material narratives.