Boy and girl fleeing from a burning building 1750 - 1760

Curator: Editor: Here we have a porcelain sculpture entitled "Boy and girl fleeing from a burning building," created around 1750-1760 by the Höchst Manufactory. It's currently located in the Metropolitan Museum of Art. It seems to depict a moment of panic. What strikes you most about this piece? Curator: Well, what initially grabs my attention is the implicit social commentary embedded within what seems, at first glance, a simple genre scene. Consider the context of 18th-century Europe: Rococo art often masked the social and political anxieties beneath its ornamental surface. What roles and stereotypes are these figures representing? Editor: So, are you suggesting it’s more than just a scene of everyday life? Curator: Precisely. The urgency in their flight raises questions. Where is the fire, and more importantly, what does it represent? Fire is destructive but is also a signifier for purification, and even revolution. Do these figures have agency? Or are they simply caught in the tides of history? And note their clothing; could that offer clues about class dynamics and social hierarchies of the period? What do you think is in that basket? Editor: I hadn't considered those elements. The basket the boy carries...perhaps food, signifying their means of survival, or something more symbolic they're trying to save? Maybe this sculpture speaks to resilience amid societal upheaval, albeit subtly. Curator: Exactly. It encourages us to question the comfortable narratives, pushing past decorative art and digging into a philosophical debate on identity, resilience and gender in Rococo art. Editor: Thank you for highlighting those sociopolitical angles. I’m beginning to see beyond just a charming figurine now! Curator: It is vital we question how art operates as a social force to fully appreciate it.