Portret van Bernard Siegfried Albinus 1721 - 1799

Editor: This is an engraving from somewhere between 1721 and 1799, titled "Portret van Bernard Siegfried Albinus". It's an anonymous piece currently residing at the Rijksmuseum. The incredible detail achieved solely through engraved lines is fascinating, and yet it feels a bit static. What stands out to you when you look at this work? Curator: For me, it’s the labor and the social context it reveals. Think about the engraver’s process. Each line, each shadow, meticulously etched to create this likeness. It speaks to a demand for reproducible images and the rising importance of scientific and medical figures like Albinus. The print wasn't just art; it was a commodity, a form of disseminating knowledge. Editor: So you’re saying the engraving itself served a purpose beyond just being aesthetically pleasing? Curator: Absolutely. The engraving’s purpose impacts the entire work. Albinus, the professor of anatomy and surgery, needed to cultivate and manage his image as part of his profession, so how does he circulate his persona? Through printed images like this one! Think about the paper itself, the ink – materials bought and sold, traded and transported. Editor: That makes me see it differently. I was initially focused on the portrait, but now I realize that there’s a whole network of production and consumption at play here. Curator: Precisely! The print embodies Baroque portraiture in the service of burgeoning industry and new technologies to manufacture identity. Editor: So, rather than simply an artistic portrayal, this engraving represents a specific moment in history when art, science, and commerce were intertwined. Curator: Yes. Now that is looking beyond the surface and at the web of connections at work here! Editor: It is, and it provides a unique insight. Thanks for helping me connect those dots!