Decoratief ontwerp met hazenjager 1874 - 1945

Editor: This is "Decoratief ontwerp met hazenjager," a drawing made with ink by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet, sometime between 1874 and 1945. It's got this really quirky feel, almost like something from a children’s book. What strikes me most is the visible sketch lines beneath the ink – it really reveals the artist’s process. What do you see in this piece? Curator: It's the process and the materials themselves that tell us a lot, isn't it? This isn't a polished presentation, it’s a peek into the mechanics of design. Consider the availability and cost of ink and paper at that time. Was this a preliminary design for something grander? Was it destined for mass production or elite consumption? Editor: That’s interesting. I hadn’t thought about the economic aspect. I was so focused on the imagery. Curator: Think about the labour involved in producing ink, in the preparation of the paper. This aesthetic, which flirts with "high art" while displaying the "low art" underpinnings, challenges the distinction between unique art object and reproducible design. Do you think Cachet intended to elevate craft, or was he simply unconcerned with the established artistic hierarchy? Editor: It’s like he's showing us all the seams, both literally and figuratively. By leaving those lines visible, he's valorizing the process, or maybe commenting on how all works are just labor and construction? I hadn't thought of this as a potentially political statement before. Curator: Precisely! We can use this object to question those values embedded in art history. Hopefully we also gained some understanding by tracing the drawing’s history, production, and social setting. Editor: I agree; I'll never see a "simple sketch" the same way again!