Lovers in an Arbour c. 1759

Curator: Let's talk about this porcelain sculpture, "Lovers in an Arbour," created around 1759 by Johann Fredrich Lück. You can find it here at the Art Institute of Chicago. It's small, delicate. What’s your immediate take? Editor: Oh, it’s delightful! The figures are like little sugared almonds. There’s a certain fragile gaiety, almost pleading to be kept safe in a bell jar, away from dust and heavy sighs. The scene feels like a snapshot of Rococo romance. Curator: I see what you mean. The arbour itself is intriguing, almost like a theatrical stage set. I imagine arbours and pergolas symbolized safe and protected places—almost like gardens within gardens in that period. Editor: Exactly. The setting creates its own contained symbolic universe. It recalls images of the "hortus conclusus," the enclosed garden representing purity and love—a popular motif with medieval origins in both art and literature, especially around images of courtship and sometimes connected with the Virgin Mary. We see that arbour imagery refashioned here, secularized, with hints of the eroticism that ran through Rococo art. Curator: Yes, it is playful! And it’s fascinating to consider porcelain, such a prized material at the time, as the medium for capturing such fleeting moments of intimacy and the human figure. The vibrant floral motifs, elaborate garments... everything about the scene drips opulence. And that tiny flower basket, crammed with its little blossoms. Editor: Right, floral patterns in art and costume design also reflect the prevailing fashion and taste, emphasizing courtly pastimes like horticulture, poetry, music, or theater—symbols that reinforced notions of love and leisure but perhaps a touch of the ephemerality and the transience of love. It is a bit of idealized courtly existence served on a small, refined scale. I'm seeing those complex references mingling in that sculpted snapshot of lovers in the arbour! Curator: Precisely. Considering Lück's craftsmanship and eye for detail, combined with all the symbolism, one has to ask: what is love after all but a brief season blooming, then withering back to earth? Editor: Mmh... Perhaps the artist wanted us to consider how to press "pause" in a fleeting season, cherishing it!