Design for a Stage Set at the Opéra, Paris 1830 - 1890

Eugène Cicéri created this stage set design for the Paris Opéra using graphite, pen, and watercolor on paper. The drawing is dominated by a meticulously constructed grid, underlying a theatrical landscape featuring a prominent tree that rises through what appears to be an elevated platform or structure. The grid's presence here isn't merely structural; it challenges traditional perspective, fragmenting the visual field into measured units. The architecture seems integrated with nature, as the tree pierces through it, blurring boundaries between the artificial and the organic. Consider how the grid and spatial arrangement, dissect and reassemble our perception of space. The restrained palette and unfinished quality further distance the design from illusionistic representation. Cicéri's work invites us to see the stage not as a window onto another world, but as a constructed, self-aware space. In this design, the grid, the muted tones, and the spatial disjunction serve to question the very nature of representation and theatrical illusion.