Boeket 1874 - 1945

Editor: So here we have "Boeket", or Bouquet, a drawing using watercolor, perhaps with colored pencil, by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet. It was made sometime between 1874 and 1945 and resides here at the Rijksmuseum. The first thing I notice is how dreamlike the whole piece seems – almost as though the bouquet is dissolving into the paper. What do you see in it? Curator: That's a lovely way to put it - "dissolving". It makes me think about memory, about how our recollections of things fade and shift over time. For me, this bouquet isn't about precise representation. Instead, Cachet is giving us the feeling of flowers, their ephemeral beauty caught in a wash of emotion. Do you find that the monochromatic palette influences your perception of its emotional weight? Editor: Definitely. The limited color palette adds to the feeling of faded memory, like an old photograph. I can imagine seeing this in my grandma's attic! Curator: Exactly! There's also something incredibly delicate in the way Cachet has handled the watercolor, wouldn't you agree? It has this sort of wispy quality. It makes you wonder about his state of mind, whether this work came from a place of melancholy, or perhaps quiet joy tinged with an awareness of life’s fleeting nature. Are we looking at remembrance, or appreciation, or even letting go? Editor: I hadn't really thought about those possibilities... now, it seems even more complex. I guess a bouquet can symbolize so much. Thanks, this was helpful! Curator: Indeed. And thinking about art is a journey that changes you. Thanks to you, too!