Champs-Élysées 

Editor: So, here we have "Champs-Élysées" by Edouard Cortes, looks like it's oil on canvas. I’m immediately struck by the slickness of the street, the reflections creating a distorted version of the world above. It feels bustling, but also lonely somehow. What can you tell me about it? Curator: Well, focusing on the materiality, consider how the thick impasto contributes to this sense of fleeting movement. Cortes uses these dollops of paint, especially to depict the street's wet surface and the artificial illumination, suggesting an industrialized urban experience. Do you notice how that affects the viewing experience? Editor: Definitely! The impasto gives everything a tactile quality. It’s almost like I can feel the rain on my face and hear the city sounds. Does the quick brushwork suggest anything about the context this was made in? Curator: Precisely! Think about the turn of the century, urbanization, industrial production, and the increasing availability of manufactured paint. Cortes captures a slice of modern life with readily available materials, in a manner accessible to a wide buying audience, blurring boundaries between ‘high art’ and commodity. The image depicts leisure and commerce merging in one of Paris's iconic consumerist spaces. Does the artist seem to be celebrating or critiquing this scene? Editor: I see what you mean! Maybe a bit of both? It’s romantic, but also feels a bit critical by pointing out the industrialization. The mood seems complex! Curator: Exactly. It showcases the power of material choices in conveying social realities and lived experience. How has examining materiality shifted your interpretation? Editor: It’s moved me past just the beauty of the scene, and made me consider what it communicates about consumption and industrial changes! It really makes you look closer. Curator: Right. Considering materiality expands our understanding, reminding us that art doesn’t exist in a vacuum, but rather in an ever-evolving world.