Bandontwerp voor: L'art hollandais à l'exposition internationale des arts décoratifs et industriels modernes, 1925 1925

Carel Adolph Lion Cachet designed this black ink drawing for the Dutch Art Exhibition in Paris. I see this image as a dance, a sort of calligraphic ballet frozen in time! I can almost imagine Cachet hunched over his drawing board, obsessively crafting these birds and vines. What’s so cool is that it doesn’t feel stiff or overly planned. There’s a playful energy, like he’s riffing on traditional motifs but giving them his own quirky spin. The birds themselves have an Art Deco flavor, all sleek lines and stylized wings. They remind me of Matisse’s cut-outs somehow, that same sense of effortless grace and bold simplicity. And look at the negative space! That blank circle in the middle, like an invitation, or a window. It’s a void, but also a promise. I feel like Cachet is whispering to us across time, reminding us that design can be both functional and utterly enchanting.