Kandelaar 1857 - 1859

This is Pierre Cuypers' pencil drawing of a 'Kandelaar', or candlestick, held in the Rijksmuseum collection. The artwork is a study in architectural form, depicting the candlestick and two additional architectural elements with precise lines against the bare paper. The drawing emphasizes verticality, a sense of height and aspiration, in line with the neo-Gothic style Cuypers was known for. Cuypers meticulously renders each component, highlighting its structure, and the geometric forms of the base and stem. The calculated arrangements of shapes and careful attention to detail invite us to decode the architectural language used. The linear quality of the drawing flattens the objects, abstracting them into a series of signs. The emphasis on structure, rather than surface, reflects the broader artistic and philosophical concerns of form and function. It invites ongoing interpretation, underscoring that an artwork's meaning evolves with each viewer's engagement.