Visitekaartje van boekhandel C. Verrassel-Charvet te Brussel before 1894

Editor: This is "Visitekaartje van boekhandel C. Verrassel-Charvet te Brussel," a calling card for a Brussels bookshop made before 1894 by A. Verbeke. It's a print, so most likely an engraving or etching, featuring a very strange, almost goblin-like figure. What strikes you most when you look at this piece? Curator: Oh, isn't he deliciously unsettling? For me, it's the clever way Verbeke has animated the commercial world. Imagine Brussels then – a city steeped in tradition, yet yearning for modern amusements. This peculiar creature isn't just selling books; he’s selling a portal to another world! That mischievous grin hints at the scandalous caricatures and carnival costumes they offered, doesn’t it? Are we invited, perhaps, to partake in a little playful transgression? Editor: That's interesting! I was mainly focused on the weirdness of the character, but you're right; he does seem to be inviting us in on a secret. How does the visual style contribute? Curator: Notice the precise, almost fussy lines of the engraving. This level of detail adds a layer of both respectability and the grotesque, don’t you think? The meticulous script contrasts wildly with the fantastical figure, creating a delightful tension. It’s almost as if propriety is struggling to contain something wonderfully rebellious. Editor: I see what you mean! So, the image is playing with this tension between order and chaos. I hadn’t thought of it that way. Curator: Precisely! This was a time when artists used visual language to express and negotiate complex societal changes. It is playful and critical at once, like a well-written satire, really. Editor: Thanks, I now feel like I understand a little better the feeling of the epoch. I was lost only in its appearance!