Menukaart Château de Haarzuijlens 1896

Mathieu Lauweriks designed this menu card for Château de Haarzuijlens, rendered on paper with a light blue print. The design, characteristic of the Art Nouveau style, features stylized floral motifs and the name of the Château, creating an elegant frame for the déjeuner offerings. The printmaking process itself is crucial to understanding this piece. Unlike a unique drawing or painting, a print allows for multiple impressions. It speaks to a context of service and hospitality at the Château, producing identical menus for each guest. This was likely achieved through a method like lithography, which would allow for the detailed reproduction of Lauweriks’s design. Consider, too, that such a menu would have been just one element in a coordinated dining experience, intended to impress. The design encapsulates the early-twentieth-century culture of dining, where artistry extended beyond the kitchen and into the very presentation of the meal. It makes you think about the immense labor involved in creating the full picture, from the farm to the table.