Illustratie voor 'Den Arbeid van Mars' van Allain Manesson Mallet 1672

Curator: Look at this print, an engraving dating back to 1672, attributed to Romeyn de Hooghe. It's an illustration created for Allain Manesson Mallet's book, 'Den Arbeid van Mars,' now housed here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Oh, wow, my first impression is that it is extremely architectural, and also a little diagrammatic. I’m struck by how the precision of the geometric form at the top contrasts so starkly with the cityscape at the bottom. It’s a city, but portrayed more like a landscape. Curator: Exactly! You see the tension between order and… well, the *idea* of order and the sprawling reality below. That geometric figure is actually a fortress design, superimposed—almost imposed, wouldn't you say?—above a panorama of Paris. Editor: Absolutely, it’s like a blueprint for control hanging over a romanticised vista. It almost feels a bit utopian, doesn’t it? This desire to organize and defend – that hexagon – imposed on lived space. Who determines the right shape of security? Curator: De Hooghe was a master of propaganda, and I feel we need to remember it’s from a military science manual. The placement says everything, not simply about defense, but about power. Paris as a prize to be protected and controlled, and even reshaped? Editor: Right, thinking of cities as puzzles of power with ideal solutions reminds me how exclusionary and even violent urban planning can be, whether it’s literal walls or less visible methods that shape and define community. Curator: Indeed. And seeing "Paris" emblazoned across the image is another visual marker for control. How a city's image is strategically defined becomes another tool. Editor: This makes me wonder about the lived experiences of Parisians back then and what visual texts like these aimed to accomplish. Curator: Definitely worth pondering. It takes more than just a good design to build a city, but sometimes people start there first, I guess. Editor: Indeed, and this engraving provides a pretty striking view into the visual power of ideas.