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Editor: Here we have a page of sketches by John Flaxman, residing in the Tate collections. The upper sketch depicts figures, perhaps a coronation? It feels rather austere, even with the celebratory nature of the scene. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I see Flaxman wrestling with classical forms, a bit like a poet trying on old robes. The severe lines and idealized figures echo ancient friezes, but there's also a yearning, a ghost of emotion that peeks through the stoicism. The lower sketch with the owl...do you see how it frames absence? Editor: It's like a nameplate waiting for a name. Both evoke a sense of something missing. Thanks! Curator: Indeed! Flaxman gives us the echo, not the shout. Food for thought, eh?