Judgement 1751

Editor: Here we have Claude Burdel's "Judgement" from 1751, a print that combines etching and gouache. Looking at this piece, I’m immediately struck by its, well, bluntness. The figures seem almost cartoonish, yet the subject matter – judgment – is so serious. What’s your take? How do you interpret this work, its style, its intent? Curator: It’s so true, isn’t it? It’s less like a divine reckoning and more like a slightly awkward school play. Perhaps Burdel aimed to make the lofty concept of judgment accessible, even a little bit… pedestrian. Notice the bright, almost childlike color palette – the sunshine yellows and the almost smudged blues. These choices do suggest less the dread of eternal accounting and more a sort of charmingly amateur performance. What about the figures themselves? They’re emerging from what appears to be a shared coffin? It makes you wonder about a group confession, perhaps? Editor: That’s a great way to look at it! A sort of collective…awakening? The shared coffin… or a bathtub, really! But what about the trumpet-blowing angel figure? Does this form of "naïve" figuration fit within other popular art historical contexts? Curator: Absolutely. This style, with its flattened perspective and bold outlines, draws from popular prints of the time. Think of the broadsheets or even early tarot cards, meant for wide distribution, not necessarily elite art collectors. This speaks volumes, doesn’t it, of a desire for art to be something collectively digested? Burdel cleverly weaves symbolism into this easily digested aesthetic, engaging everyday citizens into philosophical debates. Does seeing it in this light affect you differently? Editor: Absolutely! I was so quick to dismiss it as a crude cartoon. Now I appreciate its intention, meeting the masses where they were. I love the shared coffin/tub, the communal judgment... So interesting. Curator: Precisely! Sometimes, it's in art’s 'flaws,' where its deepest conversations begin, the most beautiful expressions erupt.