Studies 1874 - 1945

Curator: Before us is a work entitled "Studies" by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet, likely created sometime between 1874 and 1945, now held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. It’s a pencil drawing, primarily focused on abstract forms and lines. Editor: It's strikingly spare, isn't it? At first glance, the lightness, the almost ethereal quality of the pencil strokes gives a feeling of vulnerability. There's a sense of something being captured very fleetingly, a kind of hesitant exploration. Curator: Cachet was known for his symbolist designs. Though abstract, might we consider what ancestral or archetypal symbols could have subconsciously guided the composition? The flowing lines, the almost totemic presence... it hints at more than just pure abstraction. Editor: Perhaps. I’m more drawn to its modernity. I see it reflecting the artistic and social ferment of its time, possibly early modernist impulses. Are we seeing the artist experimenting with form divorced from explicit representation, or challenging what is conventionally seen as beauty? Where does gender enter the frame? Or is there something specifically that alludes to the legacy of race that is left unspoken? Curator: Interesting to view its relation to cultural conventions of that period. Certainly, the bareness, and sparseness might speak to social shifts that favoured simplification over baroque extravagance, like many avant-garde circles that were developing at the time. Editor: The simplicity could even read as a rejection of the established power structures in art. Think about it – removing elaborate detail perhaps implies a move toward inclusivity. Stripping away the ornamentation of tradition becomes an act of radical accessibility to me, given the historical legacy and its time frame. What statement would someone dare make in art when the traditional mode of thinking restricted gender or racial themes? Curator: A very compelling suggestion to examine what such deliberate visual economy might communicate! Looking closely at its construction allows us to engage with the visual components and find out just how powerfully these abstracted sketches can evoke emotive qualities as well as conceptual frameworks, even beyond our immediate assumptions. Editor: It’s a dialogue in process then, between artist and viewer, past and present, reminding us of how art can continuously hold new relevance. Curator: A wonderful way of seeing the layered, ongoing, engagement! Editor: Absolutely.