James J. Tissot and His Prodigal Son Etchings at the Smart Museum

James J. Tissot’s cycle of five “Prodigal Son” etchings projects a parable from Luke’s Gospel into the modern life of England of the 1880s. In their intriguing treatment of the parable, the etchings reflect the pitfalls of meritocratic thinking as well as Tissot’s mystique as a figure of subversion and contradiction. The talk introduces the conundrum of the piece and the artist.