Costume Design for "Adam" 1889

Editor: Here we have Charles Bianchini's "Costume Design for 'Adam'", created around 1889. It’s a mix of watercolor, colored pencil, and other media on paper, currently residing at The Met. My first thought? It feels theatrical, a bit melancholic, and rather old-fashioned in its styling. What leaps out at you? Curator: The 'Adam' title floats above this almost humble figure like a wisp of thought, doesn't it? It strikes me as tenderly tentative. He is Adam, but almost not. Bianchini renders Adam with what appears to be modern garments. What do we make of his bare feet, do you think? A charmingly incomplete figure, seemingly plucked from two times at once? Editor: I hadn't thought of the modern versus ancient feel; the bare feet against the coat really emphasize that tension. The romantic coloring seems appropriate to both settings at once, though. What are your thoughts on how the medium works to this end? Curator: Exactly. It’s in these curious contradictions that something begins to shimmer. Watercolor, in its very nature, feels ephemeral, light. Notice how the color seems to float just *above* the surface. What would change for you if it was in oils, heavy and deliberate? Editor: Oh, that's interesting, I suppose it would read much heavier, with much less possibility, almost like a historical record instead of a dream. Curator: Yes! Maybe that is the root of Romanticism as we see it on display here! Something intimate, maybe even yearning, is conveyed through the considered and skilled choice of medium. I wonder what Bianchini dreamed this character might do? Editor: Thinking about it now, that tentativeness makes it relatable, not just a design, but Adam himself hesitating before something momentous. Thank you for showing me how to think about those little clues.