Gezicht op de watervallen van Vaux-le-Vicomte 1650 - 1691

Curator: Here we have Adam Perelle’s "View of the Waterfalls of Vaux-le-Vicomte," created between 1650 and 1691, a print and etching now held at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: It's a stunning image. What strikes me is the emphasis on the artificiality of nature. The waterfalls appear almost constructed, more architectural than organic. What do you see as key formal elements at play here? Curator: Indeed. Consider the rigorous application of linear perspective. The parallel lines converge, creating an illusion of depth, yet the waterfalls themselves are rendered with an almost geometric precision, reducing nature to a series of planes. Note also the use of light and shadow, or rather the limited tonal range. This minimizes the illusion of three-dimensionality, flattening the scene and emphasizing its graphic qualities. Do you see how this contrasts with, say, the painterly effects of a contemporaneous Dutch landscape? Editor: Yes, I see that the texture is created almost entirely through line work rather than tonal gradations. The architectural lines are precise, compared to the more gestural lines depicting the foliage, giving nature an artificial geometricity. Is it possible the artist might be more interested in control than depiction of wild nature? Curator: Precisely. What this work reveals is not nature untamed, but nature codified, regulated by human design. And if you examine the relationship between foreground, middle ground, and background, do you observe anything interesting about their relationship, formally speaking? Editor: I notice there's a flatness, particularly in the middle ground with people rendered similarly in scale and detail, flattening out space rather than creating it. Curator: An astute observation. Editor: Thank you. I learned a lot. Curator: A pleasure discussing the form with you, and drawing attention to what might be a key intent for this work, given this rigorous attention to construction, line and tone.