Twee schetsen van een stoel 1874 - 1945

Curator: Welcome. Before us we have "Two Sketches of a Chair," dating from somewhere between 1874 and 1945, by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet. It's currently held at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Well, my first thought is how utilitarian it appears. Rough, almost unfinished lines, focusing solely on the bare necessity of a chair's form. I find it quite stark. Curator: Indeed. What interests me is how a simple sketch of a chair manages to invoke considerations of design and its role in domesticity, particularly through its display within a prominent institution like the Rijksmuseum. What statement is being made? Editor: It makes me consider the materiality. It’s only pencil on paper, the most basic and accessible materials. I see the drawing not just as an image but as a product of someone's labor. This person, Lion Cachet, spent time conceptualizing this basic furniture, trying to capture its essence. There's something noble in that. Curator: Precisely. And it opens us up to considering what purpose sketches serve, how design informs our understanding of daily life, even dictating our posture and comfort. Note how the sketch beside the empty chair captures the sense of scale of it while someone sits on it. How does Lion Cachet challenge societal values? Editor: Or reinforce them? Perhaps he’s also examining how even simple crafted items play a role in class structures. Consider that the sitter in the sketch, even just captured with the swift gesture of lines, suggests that a body and all the complexities that entails occupies that piece. It goes from being just a material thing to a thing intertwined with personhood. Curator: I see that as well! There is something very human even within its utilitarian rendering. That connection to societal structures, that interaction with people in their lived spaces, certainly adds to its cultural importance. Editor: Ultimately, it’s a humble sketch that pulls you in to examine something often overlooked. The everyday chair is worthy of contemplation. Curator: A deceptively simple work then, filled with nuanced observations on function, design, and everyday existence.