Zwaardgevecht tussen twee mannen c. 1854 - 1887

Editor: This is "Sword Fight Between Two Men," made with pen, watercolor, and other media by Alexander Ver Huell, likely sometime between 1854 and 1887. I am immediately struck by the arrangement of the crowd around the central duel; it almost feels like theater. What story do you think it’s trying to tell? Curator: Well, I notice this work resides in the Rijksmuseum, so it speaks to how national identity and narratives are constructed and curated. Consider the role of genre painting during this period: it often idealized specific social classes and their activities. Does this scene of upper-class men dueling promote certain values or ideas? And who might have been excluded from such representations? Editor: That’s a really interesting point! I hadn't considered the exclusions in this representation. What about the inclusion of, appears to be a Black individual in the scene? Is he simply an observer or is he participating in the event itself? How can the politics of imagery in such paintings like these be shaped by those that are being represented? Curator: Precisely. How is he positioned relative to the white figures, and what does that imply about social hierarchies and power dynamics? Considering the pen-and-watercolor technique and how easily reproducible prints of the artwork were during the time, what impact do you think imagery like this would have had on social perceptions of its diverse viewers? Editor: It sounds like this drawing is really more than just a record of a fencing match. The choices made in its composition reflect deeper social currents of the time. Curator: Exactly! By examining the social context in which "Sword Fight Between Two Men" was created and circulated, we can understand how art shapes, and is shaped by, prevailing ideologies. I wonder, would people perceive that artwork and their place within its history and significance to the artwork in the present era in a different way? Editor: Thanks! That’s made me think about genre painting, race, class, and audience participation from angles I hadn't before.