Schenkkan met griffioen als voet 1669 - 1693

This is Jean Lepautre’s etching of a ewer, or Schenkkan met griffioen als voet, made sometime in the 17th century. The ornamental object is drawn with densely hatched lines, creating a play of light and shadow that gives the etching a dynamic texture. At first glance, the form of the ewer commands attention with its intricate and elaborate design. The artist challenges the established meanings of utilitarian objects by turning them into fantastical forms with the incorporation of human and animal figures. The ewer’s semiotic system involves layers of cultural codes: each motif—the griffins, the cherubs, the masks—carries symbolic weight, alluding to classical myths and courtly aesthetics. The ewer, therefore, functions beyond its practical use, acting as a status symbol. Lepautre’s strategic deployment of line and form serves to destabilize the fixed meaning of an everyday object. The ewer's form, embedded within historical and artistic discourse, invites us to engage with how art can redefine functionality through aesthetics.