Plates III and IV of Les Soirées de Rome 1764

Curator: Hubert Robert, known for his capricci, gives us "Plates III and IV of Les Soirées de Rome" with these twin etchings of imagined Roman ruins. Editor: The mood is definitely melancholic, isn't it? All those crumbling columns... You can almost hear the whispers of forgotten empires, printed on what looks like laid paper. Curator: Robert was very interested in the contrast between the grandeur of classical architecture and the inevitable decay brought about by time and nature. Think of the labor that went into quarrying, transporting, and erecting these stones! Editor: I see the ink clinging to the paper fibers, giving it a tactile quality. It makes me wonder about the etcher’s hand, the pressure, and the acid's bite on the metal plate to create these lines. Curator: Robert often incorporated figures into his ruins, inviting us to contemplate our own place in history, perhaps hinting at cycles of creation and destruction. Editor: Cycles, yes... but also the tangible processes of creation, decay, and recreation. It's all there in the materials themselves. Curator: A dance between impermanence and the lingering echoes of human ambition. Editor: A dialogue that history continues to write, line by etched line.