Letter A 1755 - 1768

Editor: This decorative "Letter A", created with watercolor, colored pencil, and paper, dates back to between 1755 and 1768, and is currently housed in the Rijksmuseum. It feels very ornate and almost celebratory, but what else do you see in this piece? Curator: The use of rope, meticulously rendered with watercolor and colored pencil, is intriguing. Instead of precious metals we get twisted fibre, a raw material subjected to industrial processes, adorned with flowers and foliage, and topped by what reads as a sort of "crown" - yet is clearly also made of rope. We are seeing a comment here on how the labour inherent in manufacturing materials is then reworked for a refined upper-class sensibility. It raises questions: who consumes this, and to what end? Editor: So, you are focusing on how the materials themselves communicate ideas about production and consumption in society? Curator: Exactly. The Rococo style, normally associated with aristocracy and wealth, is subverted here. We must consider what type of workshop produced the ropes that were in turn so celebrated here, who drew it, what kinds of labour do we celebrate in this work, and why. Editor: That’s fascinating! I hadn’t considered the rope itself as such a central component laden with meaning. Curator: It forces us to challenge assumptions about the supposed inherent preciousness, artistic talent, and socioeconomic connotations of "high" art. We could go much deeper! Editor: Absolutely. Thank you; I will definitely look at art differently now.