Gezicht op de kust van Calabrië vanaf het uiterste punt van de vesting Messina 1778

Louis Ducros made this vista of the Calabrian coast, with Messina in the foreground, using pen, grey ink, and watercolor. It's a combination of traditional art materials, carefully applied. Ducros, active in the late 1700s, offers us a scene of relative tranquility, but the fortifications to the left tell another story. They remind us of labor, politics, and consumption. The architectural structures were built by laborers, bound by social contracts, and the entire economy of Messina was built on consumption. The watercolor medium itself is relatively quick, suggesting that Ducros wanted to capture the essence of the site, and perhaps sell the image as part of his own economy of production. By considering materials, making, and context, we understand the significance of this work, challenging traditional boundaries between fine art and craft.