Naakte jonge vrouw en deels naakte oudere vrouw bij een kooi met putti en een jonge faun 1843 - 1898

Curator: Before us is Félicien Rops’ etching, “Naakte jonge vrouw en deels naakte oudere vrouw bij een kooi met putti en een jonge faun,” likely created between 1843 and 1898. What’s your initial response? Editor: Stark and somewhat unsettling. The figures dominate, and that caged cluster of cherubs feels oppressive rather than charming. There's a strange tension between the overt eroticism and a certain looming dread. Curator: Rops frequently explored themes of sexuality, death, and societal decay, so that tension feels intentional. I’m drawn to the interplay of textures achieved through etching; the delicacy in rendering skin versus the rough, almost crude treatment of the faun. Consider the societal context—printmaking allowed Rops to disseminate his provocative ideas widely. Editor: Indeed, and if we examine the composition closely, the lines themselves—nervous and sinuous—convey a distinct mood. The woman's pose is confident, almost defiant, while the landscape fades into obscurity, rendering it as almost an allegorical staging rather than a location. How do you view that box she’s perched upon, there in the center? Curator: I find it interesting, materially, almost as an echo of crates found on factory floors from that era. One wonders, did Rops intended this "seat" to convey the subjugation of the younger woman to consumer capitalism? Editor: Perhaps. I see the composition drawing one's gaze upward. However, formally, the gaze drifts instead toward the shadowed mountains in the distance as well as that beckoning faun, drawing us away and beyond. Curator: A good point! His Symbolist aesthetic certainly suggests layered interpretations. And those cherubs... they could represent repressed desires, innocence imprisoned, or the commodification of love itself. This print challenges conventional Victorian morals. Editor: Agreed. Its potency remains, even at this remove. Curator: Yes, Rops masterfully exploited printmaking's potential to unsettle bourgeois sensibilities, challenging not just artistic norms but social structures. A fitting subject for deeper exploration. Editor: I find myself more attentive to that faun and caged putti than before, drawn in by Rops’ use of line to amplify a sense of internal strife within that scene.