Two Clerics; verso: blank page 1805 - 1806

Editor: This sketch, "Two Clerics" by Jacques-Louis David, shows two figures drawn in pencil. I’m struck by the artist’s preparatory grid—what does it reveal about the process of making this work? Curator: The grid foregrounds David’s concern with production. We can see how he methodically approached the problem of representing the figures, breaking down the labor of image-making into discrete steps. It also speaks to the social context; the church's role and presentation, rendered through the deliberate choice of materials. Editor: So the materials and method are as important as the subject? Curator: Precisely. The sketch itself becomes a document of artistic labor and the social structures that support it. Editor: That's a really insightful way to look at it; I never thought about process that way. Curator: Understanding the means of production changes how we value the final product.