Kandelaar met vaas en leeuwenkop 1772 - 1779

Curator: Jean Pelletier created this engraving between 1772 and 1779, and it’s aptly named "Kandelaar met vaas en leeuwenkop"—that is, "Candelabrum with vase and lion's head." Editor: Well, isn't that just screaming "opulence" from the rooftops! Seriously, it’s like someone took a Roman column and gave it a Baroque makeover with extra candle arms. It gives a very defined geometrical image with a clear decorative art feel. Curator: Precisely! The period saw the rise of Neoclassicism. Here we see the deliberate revival of classical forms. The lion head, the fluted column – they evoke Roman grandeur. And the precision of the engraving itself underscores this desire for order and clarity. We can think about how these designs spoke to aristocratic ideas of power, and lineage. Editor: I see it but I have a funny image of some overworked craftsman sweating bullets trying to replicate this elaborate thing for some duke's fireplace! I wonder what that original artist was truly after when he crafted this plan? Curator: We can only speculate. But let's consider the function of decorative art. Designs like these weren't mere ornamentation. They performed an essential role of solidifying the power dynamics that underpinned that society. Who could afford it? Who created it? And what political statements were implied in its decorative art imagery? Editor: You’re making me imagine the artist sketching away in some draughty workshop, dreaming of tearing down the palaces rather than decorating them! Though, thinking about it, there’s an inherent subversiveness in even this kind of ornamentation. I bet that Pelletier added some kind of artistic wink. Curator: A point worth contemplating! The piece is located in the Rijksmuseum now, divorced from its intended context. But its legacy continues, informing modern notions of design, luxury, and the sometimes turbulent relationship between art and power. Editor: Definitely, all those thoughts give the piece extra flavors to admire. A great reminder that even pretty pictures can be politically loaded—and wickedly fabulous!