Begrafenis van wijlen koning Willem II te Delft op 4 april 1849 (blad 2) 1849

Editor: This ink drawing on paper, "Begrafenis van wijlen koning Willem II te Delft op 4 april 1849 (blad 2)" from 1849, attributed to an anonymous artist, depicts what appears to be a somber procession. The figures seem very orderly and regimented, divided into many small groups. It seems fairly typical of academic art, I suppose. As a formalist, what's your perspective on how the work achieves this atmosphere? Curator: Let's look closely. Consider the use of line, primarily. Notice the rigorous repetition, how each stroke contributes to an overall sense of controlled grief. There is very little deviation in detail. The absence of vibrant colour, reduced instead to monochromatic rendering using ink on paper, amplifies the solemnity, wouldn't you agree? How do you read the overall composition in terms of structuralist binaries, such as high vs. low? Editor: I see what you mean. The use of line is quite striking, creating order through repetition, but also hierarchy, I guess, given that it goes from dense to sparse. The high versus low is also quite palpable, with the mounted and finely garbed versus foot soldiers at lower elevation in the composition. Is there a tension at play? Curator: Precisely! A formal reading foregrounds these tensions, as embedded in the visual organization of the composition itself. Notice the weight distribution. How might one interpret this from the perspective of structuralism? Are these ordered lines acting as signifiers within the visual vocabulary of grief, loss, and royal power? Editor: That’s an interesting perspective. I was focused on the representational aspect but seeing how the elements work together to create this feeling really makes the drawing more compelling, in my view. Curator: Indeed. Through formalism, we reveal the deep structure of its visual language. By deconstructing the image through semiotics and visual analysis, it is elevated far above simple representation to reveal underlying conceptual structure. This approach unveils not just what is depicted, but how its constructed form informs its emotional and intellectual content. Editor: I will definitely look at artworks differently, considering how their forms impact their meanings.