Amphitheater of the Botanical Gardens, Paris 1842

Editor: So this is Charles-François Daubigny's "Amphitheater of the Botanical Gardens, Paris," made in 1842. It’s an etching, and there’s something so still and calm about the scene. How would you describe it? Curator: Calm is good; I see more of a whimsical observation that is balanced by symmetry. Daubigny, while maybe being too young for a mid-life crisis, seemed intent on finding little pockets of natural repose. The formal garden contrasts perfectly against the looming, unkempt canopy. Editor: So, what exactly is Daubigny trying to say about nature and civilization with the Amphitheater of the Botanical Gardens? Curator: What jumps out to me here is that everything is both framed *and* fleeting. Notice how that big branch in the top frames the structure? And people milling about suggest an ephemeral human presence... fleeting. Maybe the "message," if there is one, involves the way these romantic notions – nature, structure – hold space. Like memories. Is that sappy? Editor: No, not at all! I hadn’t thought of it like that before. A memory, caught between wild nature and ordered architecture. It's a cool piece. Curator: Exactly! That interplay makes the artwork alive, don't you think? It tickles your imagination, I suppose, by hinting to you on just how wild or beautiful things could be depending on how you remember it.