Ontwerp voor een ereboog voor aartshertog Leopold Willem 1646 - 1648

Theodoor van Thulden created this design for a triumphal arch in pen and brown ink with gray wash. The structure looms large, its architectural precision articulated through carefully delineated lines and balanced proportions. The arch is a study in symmetry, with evenly spaced columns and statues lending the design a harmonious quality. But look closely, and the details start to destabilize the rigid structure. The curves of the archway and the dome are softened by the linear quality of the drawing, lending a dream-like quality to the monument. The drawing embodies a tension between classical ideals of order and the Baroque love of ornamentation. The grid markings across the page are like a semiotic code, each a signifier of the values which underpinned the design, from proportion to the symbolic weight carried by classical architectural features. Consider how the form gives presence to the arch. Though unbuilt, the design stands as a testament to the interplay of form and ideology. It encourages us to decode the ways power is not just enforced, but also represented through visual forms.