‘Mopsa The Fairy’ by Jean Ingelow 1920

Curator: We’re looking at a pen and ink drawing on paper titled ‘Mopsa The Fairy’ created around 1920 by Dorothy Lathrop. It illustrates a scene of fairy painting. Editor: It strikes me as immediately melancholic. The high-contrast black and white rendering emphasizes the stillness and slight eeriness of the scene. A young boy sits in a boat, surrounded by attentive, watchful ravens. Curator: Yes, the artist created a compelling atmosphere of Romanticism with strong linearity in her technique. The drawing illustrates the narrative quite literally. The child looks forlorn and the ravens have a fable-like anthropomorphic appearance. Editor: The ravens are the image’s core element. They act like guardians or gatekeepers, alluding to transformation, memory, and a threshold of consciousness. There's a strong contrast with the innocence of the child in such close proximity. They loom over him in the small boat, yet he seems untroubled. The linear water evokes fluidity and hidden emotional currents, too. Curator: Precisely! Fairy tales often serve as symbolic landscapes for inner struggles. It could also serve as a means for younger people to accept guidance. Note the bright moon set against the dotted night sky. This brings out both light and mystery within the artwork. Editor: And there is more; fairy tales and stories offer commentary on societal expectation and change. A young boy traveling along water in this context becomes loaded with symbolic implications – a symbolic crossing, transformation through trial. In many cultures, birds act as soul-carriers – psychopomps – helping souls find their destination. It appears this scene is poised in symbolic intensity. Curator: This offers a deeper lens to view Dorothy Lathrop’s work through. Seeing how she took the archetypes to both provide entertainment, but also to reflect upon contemporary values that the culture upheld. Editor: Right. By seeing how these symbols evolve in society over time, we realize their power remains long after a narrative fades. This fairy tale is so much more than an evening’s entertainment!