Oktober 1722 - 1784

Simon Fokke created this print called 'Oktober', using etching and engraving techniques, in the 18th century. The scene depicts laborers engaged in grape harvesting, a common agricultural practice in that era. The image gives us insight into the lives of the working class and the socio-economic structures of the time. Notice the figures carrying heavy loads, their postures reflecting the physical demands of their labor. These people are anonymous, their individual stories subsumed by the collective act of production. What does it mean when labor and the body are rendered anonymous? Fokke asks us to bear witness to the realities of rural life and the physical toll it exacts on these workers. Through Fokke’s detailed rendering, we're invited to reflect on the human cost of agricultural production and the silent narratives embedded within these historical images. It is an invitation to consider the identities and histories of those often overlooked in the grand narratives of art.