Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costume Parisien, 20 août 1813, (1334): Par-dessus de Perkal (...) 1813

Curator: What a delicate piece. This is a drawing titled "Journal des Dames et des Modes, Costume Parisien, 20 août 1813," created in 1813 by Pierre Charles Baquoy. The Rijksmuseum holds it in its collection. It employs ink and watercolour on paper. Editor: It's terribly melancholic. All this sheer, white fabric… She almost disappears into it. It feels like she’s barely there, like a ghost. Is she whispering secrets to the bird, or is it the other way around? Curator: Fashion plates such as these circulated widely, feeding a growing consumer culture eager for the latest styles. What interests me most is the materiality – the percale used for the dress and the muslin sleeves. Percale was prized for its fine weave and crisp finish, achieved through specific production processes… Editor: "Whispers of percale" sounds like a forgotten poem. Think of the rustle as she walks! But all I really notice is the small cage she’s carrying; it looks awfully lonely, rather like she does... The poor little bird might represent her own longing. Curator: It's not simply about longing, though, is it? Consider the economics of fabric production at that time, the labor involved in weaving percale. This drawing serves as a document of those systems of production. We see how fashion fuelled these very human endeavors. Editor: Of course, you’re right, it’s not just about emotion… though sometimes I think art is *always* about emotion, even when it’s talking about textile mills! This lady almost feels like an allegory of fleeting beauty trapped within societal expectations… but beautifully dressed for her captivity! Curator: Precisely! We have a convergence of social documentation and aesthetic ideals embedded in a fragile drawing on paper that prompts these interpretations. It makes one wonder about the value systems embedded within the art object. Editor: Looking at it now, I imagine that melancholy is just a side effect, a filter over reality that colors my feelings for this captured bird and the lady who holds its cage.