De tandmeester 1748 - 1798

Curator: I find this little watercolor so darkly amusing! “The Dentist,” by Willem Joseph Laquy, is ostensibly a genre scene, but look closer… it's all quite peculiar, wouldn't you say? Editor: My immediate reaction is a visual shudder. It’s the awkward angle of the patient's body, the almost cruel intensity of the dentist. The muted colors amplify the feeling of grim, quiet desperation. It speaks to the universal dread of…dental work. Curator: Exactly! Laquy gives us so much in this drawing, dated sometime between 1748 and 1798. Observe the collection of apothecary jars in the background, the almost operatic stage created by those arches… it feels less like a mundane tooth extraction, and more like a performance. The hammock strung across the top just adds to the theatre. Editor: Yes, there's definitely a staged quality. That suspended… is that an alligator, perhaps? What does it symbolize, hanging ominously above the poor patient? Is it meant to foreshadow some lurking danger or represent a raw, untamed part of our physical existence? The jaws, of course, resonate with the scene below. Curator: Perhaps. And what about that little boy grinding something in the corner, totally engrossed? Is he making some sort of medicine, or maybe preparing something altogether more sinister? Then there's the woman with the basket; she’s there as some silent, concerned guardian angel! Laquy delights in unsettling contrasts. Editor: The contrast also shows in how light is captured: softly illuminating parts of the scene but then leaving much to dark, undefined regions. The Rococo sensibility favored delicate ornamentation, which you do see in small details in the clothing or shelf decorations, but that play of light is far from superficial. The symbols might just show an uneasy tension of enlightenment ideals versus harsh realities of human experience at that time. Curator: Precisely! Laquy is brilliant because he layers satire within apparent realism. It's a little watercolor full of sharp commentary! A snapshot of discomfort rendered with sublime skill and knowing wit. Editor: Absolutely. Even within what appears a straightforward illustration, there is complex story being suggested about pain, care, spectacle, and symbolic darkness, reminding us how layered the simplest scenes are if you only care to pay attention.