Verjaagde putti komen door het raam weer binnen 1827

Editor: This is Antoine Béranger's 1827 engraving, "Verjaagde putti komen door het raam weer binnen"—or, "Chased putti come back in through the window." It feels rather dreamlike and turbulent at the same time. What jumps out at you when you look at this piece? Curator: Oh, my darling, doesn't it just pull you right in? Like stepping into a forgotten storybook. The sheer drama of those plump little cherubs being shooed away, only to sneak back in – life's little joys, aren't they just like that? Here, it seems we have someone perhaps rejecting a bit of joy or light, perhaps embracing sobriety, turning their back on mirth, only to find that exuberance unavoidable as light and laughter flood the space despite the figure's efforts! And the way Béranger uses light and shadow, it's almost theatrical. Do you notice how the figure’s rejection casts a shadow over the melancholic group? Editor: It’s like they are a burden, a distraction… Curator: Perhaps! Or, they are representative of something from within! But even chasing away the angels can't quite dim their light. A valiant attempt, darling, but ultimately futile against those heavenly interlopers! What if we were to think of each putti as the very inspiration to create art – even to create engravings of little nude angels barging through the proverbial window, or, here literally, a door? Editor: So it's a battle between gloom and...well, chubby cherubs? Curator: Precisely! A beautifully rendered struggle, etched in lines and light. But tell me, don't those thwarted cherubs somehow remind you of… us? Trying to keep the spark of imagination alive, even when life slams the door? Editor: That’s true! I didn't see it that way at first. It’s made me think of the persistence of creativity, and now the title makes perfect sense. Curator: Ah, that's it, isn’t it? It creeps back in whether you like it or not! It can be hard to see at first, but then—bam—inspiration, in winged form, no less!