Playing by Heart 1897

Lilla Cabot Perry created *Playing by Heart* using oil paints on canvas, a well-established, if not conventional, medium for artmaking at the time. The magic here is in the way Perry deployed her chosen medium; the thick paint, particularly in the sitter's dress, makes the subject seem palpable and alive. Look at how the tones move across the work. The artist has built up a texture that gives the work depth and movement. The painting's composition pulls us into the scene. We can almost hear the music, and share a sense of the room's atmosphere. In Perry’s time, there was still a rigid hierarchy between "fine art" like painting and sculpture, and the so-called "decorative arts". But when you look closely at the qualities of material and making, these categories begin to blur. After all, Perry’s virtuosity in handling oil paint is a kind of craft in itself, a learned skill that brings the artwork to life.