Roekeloze liefde 1748 - 1813

Charles Boily made this small engraving, Roekeloze Liefde, which translates to Reckless Love. This scene is staged in the boudoir of a wealthy woman, a space where she might receive guests. Yet the intimacy of the moment feels transgressive, doesn’t it? She sits at her vanity, partially undressed, as a man kneels before her in apparent adoration, even as other women look on from the doorway in shock. It is a moment of private theater made public. The woman’s body, barely concealed, becomes the focal point of both the suitor’s desires, and the viewer’s gaze. The theatrical reveal of the image plays on the artifice of feminine virtue, and it reinforces society’s obsession with female sexuality. Even as gender and class norms are being enacted, there is also a sense of defiance here. Who is in control of this scene? The power dynamic between these figures feels volatile and unresolved, much like love itself.