Panel c. 17th century

Curator: Oh, look! Isn't it delightful? It feels like stepping into a whimsical dreamscape woven with moonlight. Editor: This textile panel, likely dating to the 17th century, presents a fascinating example of Baroque decorative art now held at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. These woven tapestries often served a domestic purpose. Curator: Yes, it whispers tales of private chambers and echoing halls, don't you think? The colours are so muted, soft as a memory, with those stately peacocks watching over frolicking deer. Editor: Note how the imagery blends high art, with its allegorical representations of nature, and genre painting, showcasing elements of everyday life and the relationship between nature, human society and craftwork that brought such works into existence. It offers clues about social hierarchies. Who commissioned this? Who wove it? What was its intended purpose? Curator: I hadn't thought about the hierarchy. I am too lost in imagining a cool stone floor with the panel casually thrown across it. It also looks like the kind of scene a fairy would enjoy looking at with its rich, decorative fabric and ornamental edges. Editor: Indeed. The very material speaks to issues of access and luxury, hinting at the world that created it. Baroque style valued ornamentation and grandeur. The inclusion of weaving and textile elements represents how that sensibility permeated even functional objects. Curator: I am really noticing the individual stitches now and how lovingly crafted this weaving is. Each piece of art seems to echo across time with these faint colors of blues, tans, and a creamy background! Editor: Precisely! The act of weaving becomes significant. It is not simply art object as much as evidence of artistic and artisanal production in the seventeenth century. What do we consume when viewing art like this today, versus what seventeenth century eyes thought about viewing this? Curator: It is a lovely puzzle to solve indeed!