Portrait of Princess Zinaida Yusupova 1840

Christina Robertson painted this portrait of Princess Zinaida Yusupova using oil on canvas. But let’s think about what is actually being depicted here – most obviously, the princess’s dress. Notice its pale shimmering color, and the way it reflects the light. This effect would have been achieved by master weavers, who could create these kinds of effects using silk or other precious materials. The lace too, draped over the princess’s head, is a feat of handwork. Consider all the labor required to make these textiles; the production of the raw materials, the spinning of the thread, the weaving, the dyeing, the making of the lace. All of this is part of what you’re seeing when you look at the painting itself. It reminds us that the traditional category of “portraiture” is also deeply connected to processes of making, and to the social realities of labor and consumption.