Schetsboek met 17 bladen c. 1903 - 1904

Curator: Here at the Rijksmuseum, we have a sketchbook containing seventeen pages, crafted by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet around 1903 or 1904. Editor: Well, my first impression is quite intimate. A worn notebook is a powerful symbol of contained ideas, like a personal archive ripe for future revelation. Curator: Indeed. Cachet was known for his involvement in the Arts and Crafts movement, and this sketchbook offers insights into the aesthetic climate in the Netherlands. One can imagine him taking notes as well as exploring certain ideas he had at the time. It's primarily done in pencil. Editor: And the architectural sketches suggest more than mere representation; they seem to explore form and the emotional essence of place. There's an enduring quest for harmony visible here. The symbolism within buildings and our relationship to those built places goes so deep. Curator: Exactly! Cachet was involved with designing buildings so its intriguing to think through those social constructs reflected by architectural styles in the Netherlands, as it relates to this. Editor: Absolutely. What strikes me is that a sketchbook is almost inherently revolutionary, a physical stand-in to collect your beliefs. Curator: I see your point. The role of architecture in Cachet’s nationalist convictions is clearly relevant. The book shows us something crucial of his intentions! Editor: Right, the fact that Cachet was working on architecture as an explicit social endeavor as part of the wider national political imagination is key. It has certainly affected my experience with it. Curator: Considering the museum's position as a major holder and definer of national culture makes all this even more crucial to ponder! It's pieces like these that add color to Cachet’s story in a social landscape. Editor: Absolutely, there’s always more beneath the surface with an image that asks you to look!