Visez au coeur, belles dames! 1924

Editor: Here we have "Visez au coeur, belles dames!" created in 1924 by George Barbier. I am immediately struck by the theatrical quality, a group of flapper archers aiming at what appears to be their beloved. How should we interpret this amorous, even comical scene? Curator: Amorous is a delicious word for it! For me, it whispers of perfumed powder rooms and illicit cocktails. The almost pastel palette feels both innocent and decadent, a characteristic tension in the Art Deco movement, wouldn’t you say? Editor: Absolutely! It's like a sweet poison. Do you think Barbier is making a statement about the changing roles of women? Curator: Perhaps. Those women certainly look empowered, ready to take aim, literally and figuratively. Is it about taking control of their romantic destinies? Or simply an elegant jest at the age-old game of love? What if the arrow *is* on target, and this is a commentary of marriage and love in that era? Editor: It definitely shifts the power dynamic that's for sure. The arrow pointed at his heart instead of Cupid’s. So it shows an agency instead of a simple game, which makes it a complex situation...I suppose one artwork has so many possible points of views, right? Curator: Exactly! This playful piece invites so many questions. Like where does the theatrical meet true desires and hopes. How clever it is to create a space of possibility where nothing is fixed. Editor: Well, this has given me plenty to think about...it goes further than "just" an image now. Curator: Indeed, this drawing is now something else isn’t it? I can not look at this picture in the same way either.