Design for a Settee 1700 - 1800

Curator: What a stunning artifact. Here we have "Design for a Settee," a pencil drawing believed to be from the 18th century. It’s part of the decorative arts collection here at the Met. What strikes you about it? Editor: It's like a whisper of a seat. All these flourishes, it wants to be grand but it’s caught in this fragile state. Almost ghost-like. I can imagine the paper being pulled back centuries into some draftsman’s parlor as his only confidant in the world. Curator: Precisely! I’d suggest viewing it as far more than merely a design, although, in essence, that’s its function. To understand an object like this, one needs to analyze it in its social context. Who was commissioning such luxurious pieces, and what does this say about the socio-economic landscape of the time? It's more than just form, but evidence of power structures encoded into furniture. Editor: Right. It’s meant to communicate, right? Luxury equals comfort, and thus authority... yet what comforts truly are luxurious? My back twinges just looking at that stiff posture. Does this thing even have lumbar support? Are there layers to its performative absurdity and supposed function that run way deeper than comfort? I like pondering all of that and even the sheer preposterousness that can exist there. Curator: I agree entirely! Looking closer at this drawing we can see so much is revealed, perhaps inadvertently. The delicate lines are illustrative of a society obsessed with opulence and display. This preoccupation distracts and deflects away from existing social tensions and inherent inequity. These pieces literally uphold and legitimize those systems, right? It becomes a discourse on societal privilege rendered in graphite. Editor: Gosh I like your thinking. To see how the object's construction participates in the structure of class divides? So vital to see that as more than design! And me just sitting here all judgmental and twinging over this little sketch... but I do think it needs some plush cushions at least. You know, for the revolution… so everyone’s at least sitting pretty? Curator: An intriguing interpretation! Thank you for that very stimulating viewpoint, hopefully our listeners are able to apply such fresh scrutiny in our upcoming gallery! Editor: And who knew an old couch could inspire a re-think on wealth and equity! Until next time!