Steunpilaren der maatschappij before 1938

Curator: Oh, hello there. Let’s turn our attention to this rather… striking work. It’s called "Steunpilaren der maatschappij," which translates to "Pillars of Society," and it’s attributed to Willem van Schaik, dating from before 1938. Executed in ink on paper, it’s a drawing, a caricature. Editor: Whoa, this piece vibrates with such fierce… unapologetic energy! The wild hair, the gaze, those jewels! It's like a raw, unfiltered expression of…something… I can almost smell the cheap perfume and hear a raspy voice cackling with laughter! Curator: Indeed. The overt display of wealth and, shall we say, *confidence* begs the question: is van Schaik celebrating or satirizing these pillars? The "erotic-art" tag adds another layer. It demands that we look closely at the intersections of power, sexuality, and social status represented here. How does it sit with you? Editor: Honestly? I see both critique and a kind of defiant, maybe even wounded, pride. There’s a sadness lurking behind those cartoonish features, don’t you think? She seems burdened. The dripping ink seems to me to convey that maybe the supports the weight is unsustainable for what it is trying to uphold. Curator: I appreciate you pointing out that tension. One could argue that this work foreshadows, or at least participates in, the burgeoning critiques of bourgeois respectability gaining traction during the interwar period. How does this depiction of gender dynamics speak to you? Editor: Well, that exaggerated femininity—the coiffed hair, the jewels—it's turned up to eleven! Maybe it's hinting at how societal expectations can become grotesque masks that people feel trapped inside. I feel that maybe the gender roles are not allowing society to see something so fundamentally simple. I believe that this portrait is so deeply wounded because the support she provides and believes in are inherently conflicting. Curator: Precisely. It's a commentary on how such women both upheld and were entrapped by the very societal structures they seemed to embody. A tension that resonates profoundly. Editor: Thanks for illuminating it so perfectly. This is an image I won't forget easily; that potent, mixed feeling is sure to linger with me, inspiring a touch of something... something profound I can't articulate right now, perhaps?