Head of a Boy; verso: Head of a Woman with Glasses c. 1845 - 1847

Editor: Here we have Sanford Robinson Gifford's "Head of a Boy; verso: Head of a Woman with Glasses," a small pencil sketch. It feels so intimate, like a peek into the artist's private world. What do you make of its quiet simplicity? Curator: These sketches, especially when seen as part of a sketchbook, speak to the role of art education and practice in the 19th century. How did academic training shape artistic vision at that time, and for whom was art education accessible? Editor: That's fascinating. So, it's less about the individual portraits and more about the system that produced them? Curator: Precisely. And also about the social function of art—was it primarily for personal expression, or was it tied to broader cultural and economic forces? Considering how artists learn and who gets to learn illuminates the social context of art itself. Editor: I never considered that. I'll definitely look at sketchbooks differently from now on.