Ontwerp voor een hanger met een horloge, met rozen van glas in een zwart geëmailleerde zetting c. 1900 - 1904

Curator: Here we have a design study by René Lalique, dating from around 1900 to 1904. It's rendered in ink on paper and gives us a glimpse into his Art Nouveau jewelry. The title translates to "Design for a pendant with a watch, with glass roses in a black enameled setting." Editor: Ooh, lovely! It's a bit prickly for roses, isn’t it? Sort of goth-meets-garden-party. Makes me think of beauty with a secret, a bit dangerous. I love the sepia tone of the paper; it gives it such a vintage feel. Curator: Yes, that tension between the delicate roses and the darker, almost thorny setting is quite characteristic of the period, I believe, when there was increasing industrial expansion. Jewelery was about portraying both the beauties and tragedies of the turn of the century. Lalique wasn’t just crafting pretty things, he was engaging with complex social themes. Editor: Absolutely, a silent scream of a generation in a delicate flower. Speaking of the roses: notice how they're almost trapped inside the enameled circle, it does lend an eerie quality! It gives you a sneaking suspicion that pretty soon these little roses may be choked! And this circle that looks a lot like a clock, you feel as though the future is closed in! Am I seeing too much of our world now in an old drawing? Curator: Not at all! The fragility and opulence celebrated within the Art Nouveau movement often provided a subtle critique of industrialization. Luxury design could then become a quiet protest and become an ironic reminder. It can also provide, you see, some space for human creation and artistic reflection. Editor: You are definitely right. It looks like the old saying is still very present. The more things change, the more they stay the same. That reflection on technology and humanity always remains present within any artistic endevour. Curator: Indeed, and it is fascinating to see it crystallized here. So much social meaning wrapped up in what, at first glance, appears to be a simple jewelry design. Editor: Well, it makes me want to go home and play some Bauhaus. What a fabulous reminder that every line tells a story!