Kalenderblad voor mei 1913 met een eend met kuikens 1912

Editor: Here we have Theo van Hoytema's "Kalenderblad voor mei 1913 met een eend met kuikens" – that translates to "Calendar sheet for May 1913 with a duck and chicks" – made in 1912. It’s a drawing, a print on paper, and there’s something so comforting about its nostalgic charm. What strikes you most about this calendar? Curator: It's a gentle invitation into a simpler time, isn't it? This piece breathes Art Nouveau’s delicate touch and, perhaps surprisingly, also whispers of Symbolism. The carefully observed ducks and blossoming flora aren't merely decorative; they represent cycles, growth, and the quiet beauty of the everyday. Don’t you feel that sense of something more lingering beneath the surface? The arrangement itself, with its compartmentalized imagery and the calendar grid, almost feels like a secret language… a story told through carefully placed symbols. What about the duck family above and below – do you see a connection? Editor: I do now that you point it out! There's a sense of protection and nurturing in the top image with the mother duck surrounded by her chicks, and then the line of ducks below seems like the continuation of life as they go out into the world together. The blossom frames the grid with something like natural abundance, perhaps? Curator: Precisely! Hoytema weaves these natural motifs together to elevate something mundane, a calendar, into a meditative object. The muted colours and gentle lines almost urge you to pause, reflect on the passing days and perhaps find some of that everyday beauty he’s captured. Editor: It's funny, I initially thought of it as just quaint, but it feels far richer now. Seeing the connection of family life with the floral framework transforms my whole understanding of it. Curator: That's the lovely thing about art, isn't it? A new perspective can blossom from the most unexpected places!