Ontwerpen voor een penning 1874 - 1945

Curator: I see that you're interested in Carel Adolph Lion Cachet’s “Ontwerpen voor een penning,” a pencil drawing on paper, dating from 1874-1945. What are your first impressions? Editor: Well, it's delicate and the pencilwork gives it a provisional feeling, like a sketch rather than a finished product. What strikes me is the repetitive form. Why present multiple options? Curator: The medium immediately suggests its purpose. This isn’t just art for art’s sake. The choice of pencil and paper points to design, and design indicates function. Think about what a coin represents. It’s currency, power, a tangible representation of the state and its values, reproduced en masse. Editor: So, the process of designing a coin becomes less about individual artistic expression and more about reflecting societal power structures. Does the choice of materials - humble pencil and paper - also downplay the medal's ultimate purpose, which is wealth? Curator: Precisely. This drawing exposes the labor involved in creating these objects of power and value. Each line, each decision made on this paper, feeds into a larger system of production and, ultimately, consumption. Are we meant to question the real worth of the "currency" depicted? Editor: That’s a good question. Seeing the various sketches really puts in perspective all the drafts it takes to create an object that’s designed to look flawless. Curator: This also highlights how seemingly "minor" artistic choices like these often reflect deeply rooted power dynamics and economic considerations, far removed from conventional ideas of artistic freedom. Editor: So much more goes into everyday objects that are often overlooked, it definitely shifts my perspective about how I look at everyday life! Curator: It really opens our eyes to the unseen labor that goes into making and valuing art, and even money.