Perseus 

Editor: Alright, next up we have a drawing called "Perseus" by Aubrey Vincent Beardsley. It looks like a monochromatic photograph or maybe an ink drawing, and the composition depicts some kind of looming cityscape. There’s this really stark contrast between the blacks and whites that give it such an unsettling mood. What's your initial reaction to this piece? Curator: You're spot on about that starkness. It feels like a city swallowed by shadows, doesn't it? But, you know, shadows always play tricks on the eyes. The subject matter is an ink drawing showing what I would call a decaying city, like the tide withdrawing from a beach. Look how the buildings lean together, as if confiding secrets, and the lone figure on that post—is that Perseus? Maybe he's reflecting upon slaying Medusa and how that may play into some urban tragedy? Editor: Oh, I see what you mean about it leaning. What’s your read on the artist? Does he see himself in a place like that? Curator: That's a fantastic question! I see Beardsley here as a kind of dandy flâneur, wandering through the ruins of a romantic past, making wry observations, taking dark poetic notes. It's as if he’s not simply showing us the city, but is showing us how it weighs on the modern soul. He presents the symbolism as one where light becomes less frequent, and society is left alone to grapple with urban monsters, similar to that of Medusa, don't you think? Editor: Yeah, I think I get it. So he’s not just painting a picture but creating an entire symbolic mood. I will admit, before talking with you, I took it for a depiction of urban gloominess. Thanks for opening my eyes! Curator: My pleasure! Always a joy to wander with fresh eyes, finding new corners in even the darkest cities, literal or metaphoric.