Nicolas Boileau bij zijn bureau met zijn muze 1718

Editor: So, this is Bernard Picart's "Nicolas Boileau at his Desk with his Muse," created in 1718. It's an engraving held here at the Rijksmuseum. It has this intimate feel like we're intruding on a very private moment of artistic creation...almost like finding a page from a personal sketchbook. What catches your eye when you look at it? Curator: Ah, intruding is a wonderful word choice. Indeed, the piece feels intensely personal, doesn’t it? As if we’ve stumbled upon Boileau’s psyche laid bare. What grabs me is the tension between the rigorous Baroque ornamentation, like these fantastic scrolls and faces framing the central image, and the almost casual depiction of the writer. The ornamentation implies a grandeur and formality but peek inside and it's like looking into someone's everyday life. Does that contrast strike you? Editor: Yes, definitely! The elaborate frame makes it feel almost theatrical, then the interior is so... ordinary? Though, maybe not *ordinary* with the Muses popping in! Are those actually muses, plural? Curator: Excellent question! Well, look at their stony stillness – do they feel particularly lively or inspiring? Perhaps Picart is offering a subtle commentary on inspiration itself – is it external and glorious, or is it internal, stemming from one’s own intellect, suggested by the books? Or could those be personifications of Rhetoric and Reason alongside the Muse? It tickles the imagination. What do you think about his technique with line? Does it evoke the feeling that it could be from his notebook? Editor: I do, it looks incredibly immediate and fresh, despite being an engraving. And that makes me rethink the Muses - maybe they *are* ideas, solidifying, but still a bit rough. I've never really considered how personal "history painting" could be. Curator: Precisely! And isn't that the joy of art? It continues to surprise, centuries later. For me, this piece suggests that history, inspiration, the life of the mind - are never set in stone. The immediacy in this drawing brings them vividly to life!