Zittende visser met een hengel 1836 - 1912

Isaac Weissenbruch made this etching, "Sitting Fisherman with a Fishing Rod," on paper. It depicts a fisherman with a pipe, seated on a wooden crate with his fishing rod propped beside him. Weissenbruch lived through a time of great social change in the Netherlands, a period that saw increasing industrialization and urbanization, transforming Dutch society. The figure of the fisherman connects to a romanticized view of rural life. The etching aesthetic, with its emphasis on the individual artist's hand and its accessibility to a wider audience through printmaking, mirrors the democratization of art during this period. The Rijksmuseum, like other national museums founded in the 19th century, played a crucial role in shaping national identity through the collection and display of art. The inclusion of works like Weissenbruch’s suggests an effort to represent the lives of ordinary Dutch citizens. By researching exhibition histories and contemporary reviews, we can gain deeper insights into how this artwork was received. Art history helps us understand the social and institutional contexts that shape both the creation and interpretation of art.