St Jerome meditating on a skull 18th century

Curator: This drawing, "St Jerome meditating on a skull," dates back to the 18th century. It’s currently held here at the SMK. I am immediately drawn to the raw energy captured with the ink and charcoal on the paper, how every material element contributes to its compelling statement. Editor: Indeed, the piece reverberates with complex ideas regarding identity, the transience of life, and also questions faith during a historical time marked with upheaval. What is your first reaction to the drawing's composition? Curator: My first impression always turns to the visible hand of the artist. Look at the network of charcoal, layered in cross-hatching. Note the ink capturing light, especially on Jerome's body. Do you read this as a form of devotional labor? Editor: Most definitely, as labor connects deeply with themes central to Jerome's story. Consider this as not only labor, but his personal penitence during his time of dwelling in the desert and how it links to societal ideas of atonement and sacrifice. Also, how his story relates to gendered expectations that influence acts of service for salvation. Curator: Let’s not ignore how this specific reproduction of St Jerome’s iconography serves a devotional function for the person making it, as well as, the person using or looking at the work itself. Also, this drawing appears to embrace materiality in its bare representation through lines. There is no pretense. Editor: Right, St. Jerome as a historical figure represents textual authority. This drawing is done anonymously, democratizing this very symbol by connecting labor and thought, the act of representation to meaning making. The artist situates Jerome's internal struggles into accessible imagery of mortality, wisdom and perhaps, atonement. Curator: It pushes against traditional hierarchies. Craft and devotion intersect, allowing new appreciation of artistic and intellectual skill. Editor: Examining "St. Jerome meditating on a skull" allows a look at the connections between materiality, skill, identity, and legacy. It reminds us to ask ourselves difficult questions concerning meaning in art, then and now. Curator: Exactly, bringing material processes into conversations opens pathways toward appreciation that might otherwise remain unopened.