Courtship on the roadside 

Curator: Welcome. We’re standing before Filippo Indoni’s “Courtship on the roadside.” Note the way Indoni captures a fleeting moment between two figures. What are your first impressions? Editor: It's lovely, this soft watercolor work; I see how the layering gives form to the characters and the texture of their costumes is quite striking. Curator: Indeed. It is interesting to think about who got to access images of daily life, especially images depicting courtship. Considering how paintings, particularly genre scenes, provided moral guidance to the upper classes who had the means to buy art. Editor: It makes me consider how the clothing becomes not just decorative but almost like a marker of labour. His simple waistcoat, her working skirt, these were objects crafted with intention. I want to examine each thread. Curator: The garb definitely dictates much about their standing, doesn’t it? We’re talking about an era where visual representations carried significant weight, shaping public perception and reinforcing social norms, it becomes a sort of cultural currency. Editor: You're right. The image gets filtered, of course, because of the production behind it: these earthy pigments and how much those colours would have cost, these fine sheets of paper they’re painted on, all these steps needed labour to become a visual reality, that the common person depicted would have had no access to themselves. Curator: Absolutely. That reminds us about considering not just what is being portrayed, but also who is doing the portraying and the audience they intended to reach, as it speaks volumes about the social fabric of the time. The institutional power to dictate what is shown is also important. Editor: Very true. So, when viewing Indoni's rendering, what we see goes well beyond that initial sense of charm; we glimpse the dynamics of power that underlie what the artist chooses to spotlight. I feel so engaged with this newfound insight, and all from analysing how they're clothed! Curator: It makes me feel like a different observer now. Considering the choices Indoni made gives such insights into the politics behind its construction and distribution. Thank you!