Rococo originated in Paris, encompassing decorative art, painting, architecture, and sculpture. The aesthetic offered a softer style of decorative art compared to Baroque’s exuberance. Rococo is characterized by lightness and elegance, focusing on the use of natural forms, asymmetrical design, and subtle colors.
Painters like Antoine Watteau and Francois Boucher used lighthearted treatments, rich brushwork, and fresh colors. The Rococo style also easily translated to silver, porcelain, and French furniture. Many chairs and armoires featured curving forms, floral designs, and an expressive use of gilt.
A few weeks later. Children are asleep, Leon is reading yet another book with thick green covers while sitting in his Elba Armchair. Flora is preparing herself a cup of tea in the kitchen. She came into the living room, put down the cup, full of green tea, on the glass coffee table. As she was making herself comfortable on the couch, Leon started speaking
“An autobiography, when reading it you look wise. You look like you are interested in other people and often the story of someone else’s life is fascinating, but people who lead fascinating lives don’t have time to write autobiographies because they are too busy up the Okavango, rescuing elephants with the sultan of Brunei. This means that if you choose to read an autobiography, it will be about someone who is stupid, orange and 9. You see the problem? Much like when you buy a car, you want something that is interesting … but crucially, you want it to make you look interesting when people see you reading it. Achieving this is hard. But, boy oh boy, did I pull off a blinder. A novel by Olga Tokarczuk, it’s called Drive Your Plow Over The Bones Of The Dead. The cover is good and it looks intelligent. But the bit inside is even better. It begins by saying that only the sick are truly healthy. And it ends with a woman and a man walking down a road in cold weather. Even though the middle part is a bit much and hard to understand it is brilliant. It may not be much thicker than a brochure and no longer than a parking ticket, but it took me a near week to read. Not everyone will have heard of Drive Your Plow Over The Bones Of The Dead or its author. It’s a hidden jewel. It sits in the bookshops like the Saab 9-5 sits in the dealership: a genuine pearl, lost in a sea of razzmatazz and Day-Glo promises. So, shall we start?”
After Leon finished his speech, Flora chucked sweetly and said “You, my little philosopher.”
Leon leaned over, cleared the papers and the sketches from his laptop and put it down on the coffee table. As the laptop booted up he opened the AutoWeek website on the browser. “There’s quite a selection of cars,” Flora gasped. Leon simply nodded and opened the first link.
gggggggg
“…So the Cumulus. Not the best car to drive in the city. It feels very cumbersome and the brakes are grabby. If you take it out of the city it will be noisy on the motorway and it will roll in the bends, so it is no good in the city or out of it. However it is a nice place to be in, materials are nice and the seats are supportive. Surveys have shown that they are quite reliable, but frankly, there are better alternatives out there.”
“Why would you even list this car? Are you blind!?” said Flora in shock. “I tho-,” Leon started “I will get an eye infection if I have to look at it for another second,” sharply interrupted Flora.
@Fletchyboy100 - Brantan Stryder 130 Technique
“… Depending on which model you go for, you will be choosing between a good and a very good car. 1.6 turbo would be my recommendation. It is quick enough, gets good fuel economy and most importantly it won’t attract governments show off tax (CO2). However some compromises had to be made. Tested trim level didn’t have a layer of electronics to keep you safe, as many of its competitors have. This is annoying considering its price and size. Yes you are getting a big boot, but compared to rivals it is small. Price of the tested model was €31,900, which isn’t that bad, but it has fancy suspension and relatively high tech cabin so the servicing costs are expected to be high.”
“I don’t fancy it. It is over designed,” said Leon “Design elements don’t work very well, they look like they have just been thrown randomly around the car,” said Flora with confidently.
@ImKaeR - Husar Moklame
“… Moklame is a perfect car for you if your name is John Smith and you live in Arizona. Why may you ask? Well… it will fall apart every time it sees water weather in its liquid or solid state. It will rust. Need to overtake? No problem. Floor the throttle and it feels much like you feel now, as you sit in a chair reading the review. It has all the get-up-and-go of someone who’s dead. 11.8 lethargic seconds to 100km/h. Upsides. Not many. Safety equipment is impressive and it is decently comfortable.”
“There is nothing to discuss,” said Leon as he closed the review.
“… Don’t be mistaken it is not a sports sedan. Well it tries to be one, but it fails miserably. It has a big and powerful engine, but a 5 speed manual gearbox and very soft suspension. Hussar isn’t particularly nice to drive or comfortable. Interior isn’t anything special, not is the design. You get the sense that they tried to make it appeal to two different types of buyer and the end result is a mis-mached car that doesn’t appeal to either.
“The underpinnings aren’t that good according to a reviewer and it doesn’t look good.” said Leon. “Did they even hire a designer or did they just blow the budget on engineering the car?” Flora said between the sips of tea.
“…I was to be disappointed. First of all, the Pardus looks like a BMW that’s been subjected to a thousand years of wind erosion. On top of styling there is practicality. It is a MPV so you expect it to have millions of little storage cubbies where you can put your used tissues or CD collection that you will never listen to. But no. Thick cutlery set is more practical than it. Standard equipment you get with it is dreadful. You are paying €32,000 for this mayhem, it should at least come with ESC or SatNAv. Test vehicle didn’t have either.”
“What in the world is this?” scolded Flora. “A disaster,” replied Leon.
@cake_ape - Mons Party “Gezellig”
“… With an exception of its idiotic name it is a good MPV. Huge boot and tons of passenger space make it a very practical car. Manual gearbox is nice to use, on the notchy side but still nice to use. It is a doddle to drive around the city. Only aspect worth complaining about is the performance. When overtaking you have to plan ahead, and the engine can feel lackluster in some situations.”
“Seems fine to me,” nodded Leon. “I don’t know. The design doesn’t do it for me, it looks like every other MPV on the road, seems very unimaginative and it has that weird bonnet bulge,” argued Flora.
@EnCR - AMB J160
“… To drive? Well, apart from the dim-witted automatic gearbox, it was pretty good. Perhaps it’s not quite as comfy over the bumps as a Mauntley Ward , but the upside of this is that the people in the back are less likely to become vomity should you ever find yourself on a switchback road in the Atlas mountains. J160 also offers a big boot and a lot of space inside the cabin. Model tested was €28,700, which seems like a very good deal, but don’t get sucked into that. It may be relatively cheap to buy, but it is not cheap to run. I managed only 9.3L/100km which is appalling, and it gets worse when you add emissions to the mix. J1600 is a decent allrounder, but not with that 2.4L engine.”
“I really liked this one. It is definitely a cool looking car” sighed Flora. “Same, but beggars can’t be choosers,” stated Leon and closed the review tab.
“… FWM lost the plot with this one. FWM fitted the Aspen with a powerful engine and a suspension set up which is from the previous century, results are well… predictable. It is a driver-focused estate which isn’t drivable and a comfortable estate which isn’t comfortable. Yes, the engine is punchy and will get you out of trouble, but do you really need that much power? It emits a lot of carbon dioxide which means it will be expensive to tax and it is thirsty. On top of it all it is a very shouty car, just look at those DRLs. There is no escape from the reality that it is a practical car, but when compared to the competition, it falls behind.”
“Amm… I think the writer summarized it nicely,” said Leon as he glanced towards Flora. “It isn’t what we are looking for, is it?” asked Flora. “I don’t think so, no,” replied Leon. “It was a rhetorical question, just go on to the next one,” laughed Flora.
@Jaimz - FM Horizon
“… That was an amazing experience. Anyways the Horizon. I don’t like it. It wasn’t made with motorway driving in mind, it is very loud at motorway speeds. It wasn’t made with city driving in mind either, because the suspension is stupendously stiff,and it wasn’t made with a typical family in mind because it isn’t very safe. I drove around in it for a week and I’m still struggling to figure out what its true purpose is. It’s reasonably good value, it’s practical and it gets decent fuel economy, but these things aren’t quite enough for you to forget the elephant in the room. Which will come in the shape of a free trip to ER.”
“
no comment”
“… This is a car you buy with your fleece on. Aries is a very versatile mode of transport. It seats 7, it has a big boot and tons of space in the cabin. There is nothing outstanding in this package, as you would expect, but that is not a bad thing. Engineering follows the same principle as the design. Practical and anonymous. It is good to drive, scores excellently in euro NCAP tests and get this: there are 47 cubbyholes. Which means it’s no use at all for someone who needs 48 places to store stuff. But for everyone else it’s great. However, it isn’t without drawbacks. Brakes are non-existent, the suspension is stiffer than you would expect it to be, this is very noticeable when driving on badly surfaced roads. Lastly, it is slow. 1.6l turbo that was under the bonnet of my test car was fine when there was no cargo on board. If you plan on towing with it this 1.6 will be about as useful as a chocolate teapot.”
“Hey that seems like a reasonable car, we won’t be towing anything so I don’t see a problem with it,” gushed Leon. “It’s meh, plain, boring, white. The appeal of it is in what it offers, not how it looks, I am sure we will find something that ticks all boxes,” stated Flora.
“… Ward is a capable little crossover. The model I went for was a 4x4 and let me tell you, it is very capable off the beaten track. It got me to my friend’s farm with no problem and in sumptuous comfort. This particular model I tested was fitted with a 6-speed manual, which I expected to be rubbish, but I was pleasantly surprised. Ward is an easy car to drive considering it had 4x4 and a manual. It is also very well equipped and luxurious considering it is a lower trim level. What about drawbacks? It doesn’t come standard with an ESC system nor a fancy layer of electronics that will prevent you from having a low-speed crash. These systems are optional extras. It doesn’t look bad does it. However, how would you feel if I told you it is made out of steel, pure old fashioned non treated steel. So the Mauntley Ward. A car perfect for a family that lives in the countryside in Cyprus, but not so good for a family that lives in Monrovia.”
“Shame, shame, I liked the design so much. It would really stand out,” sighed Leon. “
“… So to get back to AX3. As I already said it is very comfortable, suspension soaks up bumps and angulations in the road nicely. However, the ride becomes choppy when driving at higher speeds or if you go over a pothole at a higher rate of speed. Firstly the front jolts and then the rear and it just doesn’t want to settle down. You can feel that the front and rear suspension aren’t calibrated that well. Then you have the 5 speed automatic gearbox, it isn’t indecisive it is just slow and the gears are long. If you are after refinement I would avoid 2.3 inline 6. The power delivery is laggy. At the lower end there is nothing, you have to wait for the turbo to kick in. If this doesn’t put you off the next argument should. It has the same chassis and panel material as the Ward - untreated steel.”
“Not, again,” wimped Leon. “I preferred the design of Ward anyway, this one doesn’t stand out as much,” said Flora.
“… I would describe Lares as a tall car with the engine from a canal boat under the bonnet. It is sluggish, it takes 11.8 pedestrian seconds to 100km/h. If you want to overtake, you have to plan ahead. It also feels very cavernous on the road. But there is an upside. It feels cavernous because it is. It is a type of vehicle you take if you are planning on buying the whole ikea and then taking your whole family on a road trip. It is also very safe, it comes standard with ESC and the sensor that won’t let you have a low speed crash this means it is cheap to insure. To put it bluntly, Lares is a good overall package, it might lack in the performance department, but it makes it all up with versatility and practicality.”
“It is a bit like a A4 piece of paper, versatile but boring,” said Flora. “Yeah you are right, the front looks nice but the rear is a bit dated and uninspiring,” declared Leon and moved on.
