Night 1860

Curator: This is "Night," an engraving made around 1860 by Jacques-Adrien Lavieille. Editor: Immediately I see the density of line work creating such dramatic darkness; it’s very atmospheric. Makes you feel quite intimately invited into their humble interior. Curator: It's a lovely example of his genre scenes, focusing on domestic life and labor. We see a woman sewing, a man engaged in some form of craft, perhaps basket weaving, and a child—all illuminated by a single lamp. The materials used were paper, the ink, and the plate for engraving—each playing a role in the affordability of the print to a broad public. Editor: Precisely. Consider the era's political context. Working-class families struggling under industrial capitalism; their resilience depicted in the everyday acts of mending, crafting, existing in the face of economic hardship. Curator: The tools on the floor further emphasize the manual nature of their occupations, and the time itself suggests the long hours often necessary for the poor working class to eke out a modest living. The glow is contained and close in proximity to the central subjects and makes one wonder how little light must have been commonplace. Editor: That central light becomes more than illumination; it symbolizes the hope that persists amid dim circumstances, a testament to family bonds when they served as systems of economic and emotional survival for working-class communities. This image, at its core, highlights the gendered divisions of labor. Curator: The division of space and labor, between what appears to be feminine needle work versus a craft commonly done by men… It shows, too, the economy of movement dictated by the tight space—everything needed within arm’s reach. Editor: It is a picture of social history, one that speaks to how art provides invaluable narratives that intersect politics, gender, labor, and hope. The light, again, is striking. It softens what would be a portrait of hardship. Curator: Lavieille reminds us that, in any context, materials and making, reflect the struggles and triumphs inherent to human survival. Editor: It challenges us to acknowledge the endurance that comes from families.