Karikatuur van vijf koppen rond een schotel 1823

Editor: Here we have "Caricature of Five Heads Around a Dish," a pencil drawing by Louis Léopold Boilly, dating back to 1823. I’m immediately struck by the expressions; it's almost painful to look at. What do you make of these, let’s call them, grimaces? Curator: Grimaces is precisely the right word! The drawing encapsulates such a visceral reaction, doesn't it? Boilly masterfully uses pencil to amplify the exaggeration of each face, pulling us into their shared experience. I imagine it must be terrible. Think about a flavor so sharp it contorts your face and invites the solidarity of those around you! Does this strike you as an act of repulsion, of communion, or perhaps something in between? Editor: That's an interesting way to put it, communal revulsion! I was focusing on individual reactions, but there is definitely something happening collectively. Maybe misery *does* love company? Curator: Exactly! Look how Boilly groups the figures together, almost forcing them into this shared moment. The neoclassical era, known for its emphasis on reason, still had space for explorations of the grotesque, wouldn’t you say? Perhaps as a pressure release? A necessary exaggeration in response to so much formal rigidity? Editor: That’s a great point, the contrast between neoclassicism and caricature. I guess I hadn't thought about caricature as having its own historical context. Curator: It always does! What began as a casual observation has bloomed into a full reflection on art, taste, and even historical constraint. Editor: I’ll definitely see Boilly and this piece differently now. Thanks for illuminating that.