The Rendezvous (fan) c. 19th century

Editor: So, this lovely fan, titled "The Rendezvous," is by Charles Conder, from around the late 19th century. It feels like a whispered secret, doesn't it? What story do you think it's trying to tell? Curator: Ah, secrets! Well, it whispers of fleeting moments, of rendezvous both promised and perhaps forbidden. The fan itself, a tool of flirtation, becomes the canvas. Conder captures the Impressionistic blur of a social scene, doesn't he? The figures are almost mirages, floating in a dreamscape of blue and gold. Editor: I see that. A dreamscape... Do you think the central figures are the focus, or are we meant to observe the entire scene? Curator: I think it's both, isn't it? The figures draw us in, but the hazy, almost ethereal quality of the surrounding landscape suggests that the rendezvous is just one small piece of a larger, more complex social dance. A whisper in a crowded ballroom, perhaps? Editor: That's a beautiful way to put it. I’m definitely looking at it in a different light now. Curator: That's art, isn't it? A little whisper that changes the way we see the world.