Boerin uit Edam 1619 - 1623

Editor: This print is called "Boerin uit Edam," created by Adriaen Matham between 1619 and 1623. It's currently housed in the Rijksmuseum. What strikes me most is the subject's gaze – it seems to carry a subtle challenge. How do you interpret this work, focusing on its composition and use of line? Curator: Certainly. Matham's technical skill is immediately apparent in the precision of his engraving. Consider the stark contrasts, the artist utilizes the lines to describe form and texture meticulously. The stippling creates a dynamic range of tones in an etching that inherently favors either/or. We can also consider how the woman divides space. She is roughly 3/5 of the image with the background the other 2/5, conforming to a classical idea of beauty. It does, however, seem Matham deviates, opting to have the natural and contrived (e.g. smoke, barrels) vie for that same visual space in ways that the figure is privileged for holding space by virtue of her expression. What do you observe from how lines work together? Editor: That's a helpful distinction. The background definitely plays an important part, with so much effort placed on etching things into existence that the woman occupies that space less. With a background and objects clamoring for space and form that aren't merely geometric, does that have an equalizing effect, taking visual space and value away from the woman, per se? Curator: It's compelling to think of how different objects work in a structural relationship to compete, vie for or take space. What if you shift focus to see what the other elements give to the woman? Editor: Right, without the landscape, the boats, barrel, etc., her place is rootless. Thinking structurally it is all integral, so without the other things being well-developed in relation to the figure's space, all the qualities are lesser. Thank you.