In 't jaar 69 c. 1789 - 1810

Editor: We’re looking at "In 't jaar 69," a drawing in pen, ink and paper made sometime between 1789 and 1810 by an anonymous artist. It depicts a scene with many figures in what seems like a clearing, with an orator gesturing outwards. The monochromatic rendering lends a rather ethereal mood to this tableau. What strikes you when you look at it? Curator: The magic in this drawing bubbles up from that historical moment it hints at—a yearning for simpler times. 'In 't jaar 69' alludes to the Batavian revolt, that brief window where the Netherlands imagined itself anew, free from Roman shackles. I love the romantic naiveté—these idealized, almost neoclassical figures in a "natural" setting. Look at them, striving for that noble savage vibe! Almost as if yearning to escape the complexities of contemporary society. Editor: It feels like the artist is intentionally mythologizing the past, rather than trying to depict it accurately. Is that fair to say? Curator: Absolutely! It's more about creating a national origin story. This drawing acts as pure imagination, weaving ideals of liberty and virtue into a historical moment ripe with potential for nation-building. That faint landscape with what seem to be an army off on the horizon... doesn't it make you wonder whether it refers to present challenges back in the moment of its creation? Editor: It does! Now I see those characters, the composition and those distant soldiers differently, giving the drawing an unexpected dramatic depth. Curator: The artist summons a conversation between past and present, fantasy and history—a tightrope walk in ink and paper. It’s why art from this period fascinates me, as it becomes more than mere representation but rather whispers hidden ambitions!