Twee bureaus 1895

Editor: This is "Twee bureaus" or "Two Desks" by Léon Laroche, from 1895, a watercolour and pencil sketch. The muted tones give it a very calming feel, almost like looking at architectural blueprints. What stands out to you when you look at this piece? Curator: Calming, yes, like a quiet dream of order! To me, this drawing is all about *possibilities*. It's not just showing us *desks*, but hinting at entire rooms, lifestyles, perhaps even secret correspondences conducted by candlelight! Laroche lets us glimpse the aspirations of late 19th-century design. Does it strike you as perhaps a little… nostalgic? Editor: Nostalgic in what sense? Because they’re both styles from earlier centuries? Curator: Exactly! And there's a particular gentleness in how Laroche renders these "little bureaus", isn't there? Almost like he's not selling you a product, but sharing a fond memory. It makes me wonder about *his* desk, cluttered or immaculate, overflowing with dreams or strictly business... which desk do *you* prefer? Editor: I think the one on the left; the curves feel more inviting, warmer somehow. But they both do seem very… upright, don't they? Curator: Indeed. Stately little guardians of ink and paper! But upright doesn't necessarily mean *unbending*, does it? I see a hint of whimsicality, too, especially in the Louis XV desk on the left with that delicate top flourish. What story does this artwork want to tell? Editor: I see what you mean. I thought it was a technical drawing, but now it seems like a little portal back to a very mannered past. It has that slightly surreal, out-of-time feeling to it. Curator: Exactly. Laroche teases our imagination, proving that even something as utilitarian as a desk can hold within it the echo of dreams.