Nieuwjaarswens van Octave Uzanne voor het jaar 1897 1896

Curator: Let's pause here in front of "Nieuwjaarswens van Octave Uzanne voor het jaar 1897," or "Octave Uzanne's New Year's Wish for the Year 1897," created in 1896 by Georges de Feure. It's a color lithograph. Editor: It strikes me as remarkably intimate, almost like stumbling upon a quiet moment. A lady absorbed in a book in a domestic setting, bathed in soft colors. There’s a real stillness to it. Curator: De Feure perfectly captures the Art Nouveau spirit here. Note the swirling lines, the decorative flattening, and the focus on the aesthetic. He’s celebrating the dawn of a new era, quite literally given the subject of the print. Editor: Indeed! It’s interesting how he uses this limited color palette to create a mood of muted elegance. The checkerboard design underneath the book shelf seems so forward to me—almost surreal within this cozy space. I like that tension. Curator: It emphasizes the controlled geometry juxtaposed with the natural, flowing forms favored by Art Nouveau artists. You can also see it in the window, which seems almost superimposed above the shelf like the image itself. Editor: Right. And the typeface. How the name floats over everything else is an integral component of the art piece. Beyond that, what does it actually communicate? It reads more like an announcement or an advertisement. Curator: It was, in fact, a printed New Year’s greeting card sent by the author Octave Uzanne to his acquaintances from his residence. The woman might very well be a portrayal of his apartment filled with books and objects, as seen from Quai Voltaire, one year before 1898 would be deemed "the year of Art Nouveau." Editor: Knowing that reframes everything, doesn't it? It’s no longer just an image, it's a fragment of a personal connection, a message across time—like receiving a glimpse of that intimate, introspective scene through a time portal. I like it so much more knowing the context. Curator: I agree entirely, let us move on to our next object.