Ontwerp voor raam in het Amsterdams Lyceum 1927 - 1929

Editor: This is Richard Roland Holst’s "Design for a Window in the Amsterdam Lyceum," created between 1927 and 1929. It's a mixed-media piece, including drawing, tempera, and paint. The colours are quite muted, almost earthy, and I’m struck by this figure with what looks like a telescope, set against that fractured background... What do you see in it? Curator: Ah, yes, isn't it curious? To me, it feels like Holst is exploring a sense of inner vision. That figure, holding what you rightly point out could be a telescope – perhaps it’s a symbol of knowledge, or even prophecy, presented within this mosaic of experiences. Imagine the light flooding through the finished window in the Lyceum; I wonder what those students made of it! Do you feel that fractured background lends a certain restlessness to the piece? Editor: Absolutely! It's as though the figure is standing at the intersection of different worlds or perspectives. The rigidity of those geometric shapes surrounding a figure of great substance is intense! I do appreciate the connection to stained glass. Was Roland Holst a big name at that time? Curator: Oh, decidedly. He was something of a beacon in the Dutch art scene, moving within Symbolist and Social-artistic circles. You know, seeing this piece now makes me think of my grandfather, always peering at the world with curiosity and an eye for the sublime, convinced that the mundane was simply unexplored potential. Tell me, does this image inspire some form of emotional memory in you? Editor: I never knew that stained glass could provoke a connection as sentimental. But to know how connected this piece is to Dutch history gives more to explore and reflect upon. Curator: Exactly, and art becomes a bridge to so many different realities; something real can be so much more poignant than a mirror-image. So thanks, together, we were able to look deeper into this design.