Frontispiece: Truth 1885

Curator: Fantin-Latour created this lithograph, titled "Frontispiece: Truth," in 1885. You can find it here at the Art Institute of Chicago. Editor: My first thought? Dreamy. There's a softness to the scene, almost like a faded memory or a half-remembered myth. All the soft, cloudlike shapes, so easy on the eye. Curator: That softness comes from his mastery of lithography. The process allows for incredibly subtle gradations of tone. As you get closer, you can appreciate how he achieved the delicate blending through complex layers of ink. Consider its place in the history of printmaking as an independent art form. Editor: Totally. It's like he’s painting with light and shadow rather than carving lines. What do you make of the allegory here? Seems heavy, but also...uplifting? Curator: The figure personifying Truth rises, holding a tablet inscribed with composers' names, seemingly elevated to a higher status by the winged figure. You have Schumann, Berlioz, Wagner, and Brahms, specifically honored in his tableau, which reveals a deliberate act of artistic canonization. This reflects Fantin-Latour’s deep investment in the musical world and his active role in shaping public taste through art. Editor: Art building up art, music, and fame all at once. And that trumpeting angel just seems ready to usher in some grand pronouncements, doesn't it? Though it's really funny how they're sort of piled up there, with all those little cherubs kinda crammed behind the winged goddess. What's up with the angel pile up? Curator: It is certainly evocative in its arrangement, prompting interpretation regarding visual economy versus deliberate stacking of visual language, specifically considering Fantin-Latour's overall project for public promotion of music in visual art at the time. What resonates with me is the bold choice to visualize an artistic stance on truth in music itself. Editor: Mmhmm. Truth always makes things a little noisy. A perfect print to close the ears and open the mind, and an ideal image to take in, right before strolling off for an exquisite moment with our very own truth.