La Folie l'égare (Folly Adrift) 1810 - 1820

Jean-Baptiste Mallet created this delicate drawing, “Folly Adrift,” using black chalk and stumping, a blending technique, around the turn of the 19th century. Look closely, and you'll notice how the chalk is layered, almost like sediment. The medium allows Mallet to create a strong contrast between light and shadow. The effect is a dreamlike scene of a woman, perhaps Venus, with cupid, adrift at sea in an improbable vessel. What's especially interesting here is the artist's choice of a dry medium like chalk, which demands considerable labor. The build-up of tone requires a sustained commitment to the image. This is not a quick sketch, but a carefully constructed fantasy. The artist's hand and his work, are embedded within. Recognizing the labor and the choice of material in "Folly Adrift" reminds us that every artwork is fundamentally shaped by the artist's decisions, and the social context in which they work.