Furniture Hardware 1820 - 1830

Curator: Look at this sheet of Furniture Hardware from France, created between 1820 and 1830, currently residing at The Met. It’s presented as a drawing featuring multiple designs for metal reliefs. What strikes you first? Editor: The sheer abundance! It’s a kind of compendium of ornate metalwork. An encyclopedia of rococo hardware, if you will. You immediately get a sense of the aspirations of the patrons for whom these pieces would have been crafted. Curator: Precisely. And consider the period. These aren't just ornamental fancies; they're emblems. Note the cherubs—eternal innocents rendered here almost as miniature artisans and musicians. They resonate with older ideas of innocence and craftsmanship coexisting. Editor: So the furniture wasn't just functional; it broadcasted wealth, taste, and values, tying back to ideals of virtue and maybe a touch of divine blessing through those cherubic figures. How do these designs reflect or challenge prevailing artistic styles, though? Curator: Baroque's exuberance meets the decorative arts' practicality here. There’s a tension between pure artistic expression and function that defines the era. We see it echoed across silverware, ceramics, even textiles, all mirroring this intense focus on the interplay of line and form. Editor: These patterns seem ready to adorn everything from drawer pulls to cabinet doors. Viewing these designs, do you see it as reflecting, reinforcing, or maybe even subverting, any kind of established power structures within society? Curator: I think this imagery is, in many ways, enshrining it. Those who controlled access to the era’s luxury goods and artistry like this asserted their position within society through patronage and display. By embracing such extravagance, one underscored social hierarchy through ownership. Editor: Yes. Looking at them collectively really showcases how embedded even seemingly minor objects are within social currents and desires. Curator: Absolutely. What an intricate microcosm of the socio-political sphere! I feel like this object invites me to ponder over objects, art, and society itself.