The Enticements of Sensual Love (?) 18th-19th century

Curator: This is Philippe Auguste Hennequin's drawing, likely titled "The Enticements of Sensual Love." It's a study really, about 50 by 35 centimeters, and full of classical motifs. Editor: What strikes me is the cool detachment, the way the figures seem to float in a hazy dream. It's sensual, sure, but in a very cerebral way. Curator: Hennequin was working during a period of intense social upheaval. Drawings like this gave artists a space to explore desire within the bounds of Neoclassical restraint. See how the architecture seems to be both supporting and enclosing the figures. Editor: Yes, the architecture is almost oppressive. The figures, caught in their drama, barely notice the solidness around them. It makes you wonder about the politics of pleasure, doesn’t it? Curator: Absolutely. The French Revolution loomed large. Art became a site for negotiating ideas of liberty, virtue, and yes, even love. A potent little moment. Editor: Precisely. I’m leaving with a sense of passion tempered by looming societal restraints, a complex, slightly unsettling feeling.