Music-Making Angel; verso: Profile Head of a Youth Wearing a Cap c. 1500 - 1505

Curator: This drawing is attributed to Pietro Perugino, born in 1446, and is titled "Music-Making Angel; verso: Profile Head of a Youth Wearing a Cap." It's approximately 29 by 20 centimeters. Editor: It feels ghostly, doesn't it? Like a half-remembered dream of music. The wispy lines… almost ethereal. Curator: Exactly. Its materiality tells a story of artistic process, a study perhaps. Notice the thin strokes, the way he’s building form. Consider the cost of paper at the time; this wasn't casual doodling. Editor: I like imagining him sketching this in a sun-drenched studio. Was he humming a tune, I wonder, while coaxing the angel onto the page? Curator: More likely he was considering the commission for which this preparatory sketch was intended. Angels, music, these were commodities in the devotional art market. Editor: Oh, but can't we allow the angel to sing, even if it was for a price? To me, the feeling is delicate and full of potential. Curator: And to me, its beauty rests in the knowledge of its construction, the labor that went into its making, and its position within the socio-economic structures of Renaissance art. Editor: Still, it whispers to me. Curator: It speaks volumes about production.