Settee 1725 - 1735

Curator: My goodness, look at the way the light plays on that gilding! It feels… theatrical, almost like a gilded cage ready for a grand performance. Editor: Indeed. What we have here is a baroque-style settee, made sometime between 1725 and 1735. It's currently housed here at The Metropolitan Museum of Art and crafted by the English furniture maker, Benjamin Goodison. Curator: "Crafted" feels almost too… reserved. More like conjured! The red cushion is like a drop of blood against all that ostentatious gold. I wonder, were conversations on this settee whispered or shouted? Did it witness grand pronouncements or scandalous secrets? Editor: Well, such settees were undoubtedly status symbols in the 18th century. Patrons used such objects to project an image of power, prosperity and cultivated taste. This particular settee with all the carving of foliage and shells speaks to the Baroque tendency to want to overwhelm through detail. Curator: And look at those claw feet. Regal beast feet! There's such a primal energy contrasting with the refined elegance. Like the wild heart barely contained beneath the finery. I picture someone nervously fidgeting on it, trying to seem composed when, really, their inner lion wants to leap out. Editor: The lion as ornament is entirely intentional. Displaying exotic animal motifs signalled a knowledge and, by implication, control of the wider world to contemporaries. Goodison understood these associations, catering to a aristocratic clientele with the capacity and desire to impress. Curator: I find that interesting because the artisan's hand is really showcased by every curve and flourish, a reminder that such outward display rested on skillful craft behind the scenes. I keep coming back to that intense, intimate red against the all that bombast. Editor: Absolutely. Ultimately, even now, after all these centuries, its visual presence can spark ideas around ideas about hierarchy and artistry, power and imagination. Curator: I agree. The seat still sparks conversation.