Familiewapen 1857 - 1859

Curator: Pierre Cuypers created this detailed pencil drawing titled "Familiewapen," sometime between 1857 and 1859. It's currently housed right here at the Rijksmuseum. My first thought? It looks a bit lonely in all that open space. Editor: The visual weight definitely pulls toward the upper-right quadrant. The heraldic device itself appears intricately constructed, but that's clear given Cuypers' architectural focus. The negative space amplifies the meticulous quality of line making in the shield, highlighting its complex structure, wouldn’t you agree? Curator: I do, I do! There is something quietly powerful about the solitary mark he makes on all that untouched paper. It's almost like he's daring us to find significance in the silence, which I like. Gives my mind space to invent all kinds of hidden backstories for that coat of arms! The flowing ribbons on it almost seem like secrets whispered in the wind… Editor: The use of pencil allows for delicate gradations of tone, suggesting both solidity and ephemerality. And given its size, on paper rather than vellum, points towards it being more of a study. It lacks the definitive presence of a finalized coat of arms rendered in enamel or tapestry. But, let's get speculative: what kind of tales do you conjure up from it? Curator: Oh, where do I even begin? Maybe it's a symbol for a family that's slowly fading from history, leaving behind only these whispers and a sense of forgotten grandeur. Or perhaps it's about reinvention – shedding the old skin, emerging anew like those spiraling decorations around the shield. Or perhaps he drew it when thinking about mortality – the ultimate transformation. But mostly it seems that what history does to memory has a beautiful visual parallel here. Editor: An astute, almost biographical assessment there. I think focusing on technique emphasizes that transition or transformation through those erasures and reworking apparent, a crucial part of this study for any family to take forward and bear across generations. And it leaves me considering those precise vertical and horizontal guidelines bisecting the sheet. They subtly reinforce a rational structure underlying the ostensibly emotive crest and are almost mathematical, perhaps representing stability… Curator: Maybe it really did work in terms of creating stability: both physical stability for the artwork, and psychological balance for those viewing and considering it. Well, it certainly gives my head a stable home for daydreaming. Editor: Indeed! It seems Cuypers created here something that functions on both artistic and emotional registers in unison.