Personificatie van de beeldhouwkunst met een buste van Lodewijk XV van Frankrijk 1756

Etienne Fessard’s engraving presents us with an allegory of sculpture, featuring a child artist crafting a bust of Louis XV. Observe the motif of the child sculptor, reminiscent of ancient Roman depictions of Cupid, the god of love, often shown shaping hearts with similar tools. This iconography suggests a transformation; from shaping emotions to shaping stone. The tools in the child's hands link to a lineage of artistic creation across time. The presence of Louis XV’s bust invokes the tradition of Roman emperors, whose likenesses were also immortalized in stone. Look at the mask lying on the floor. This symbol of theatricality suggests the complex interplay of appearance and reality that art explores. It is through this careful construction, an almost dreamlike state, that sculpture mirrors both the external world and our internal selves.