Twee zuilen 1772 - 1779

These two columns were drawn by Nicolas Dupin in the late 18th century, probably as part of a catalogue of designs for furnishing interiors. Look closely, and you will see the meticulous attention to detail in the rendering of each form. One column appears to be made of plain stone, girdled with a rope detail. The other is striated, like marble, with an egg-and-dart pattern at its crown. These are not presented as unique works of art, but repeatable designs, able to be multiplied and placed in any suitably fashionable interior. The industrial revolution was gathering pace at this time, and it was becoming increasingly easy to create objects at scale. Dupin was part of this shift, showing how traditional fine art skills could be put in the service of a newly consumerist society. It is easy to overlook the tremendous skill involved in this kind of precise design work, but that would be a mistake. The drawing allows us to appreciate both the artistic flair and the historical context in which these designs were produced.