Figures in a Roman Arcade 1763

Hubert Robert rendered "Figures in a Roman Arcade" using sanguine on paper. Robert's interest in architecture places the viewer in the role of a traveler, encountering the classical world. But who populates this classical scene? Through Robert's gaze, we witness a gathering of bodies in a state of leisure. Men recline and converse, their forms rendered with loose strokes that convey a sense of everyday life unfolding amidst the grandeur of Roman architecture. But where are the women? What are their roles? Are they simply relegated to the background of the scene, or do their absence and presence speak to the societal roles and expectations of the time? Robert creates a space, then, that is both a celebration of the classical past, and an enactment of gendered social norms. It's a dynamic interplay that asks us to consider not only the aesthetic beauty, but the politics of representation.