Scène uit toneelstuk De kaartlegster 1865 - 1868

Charles Rochussen made this lithograph, 'Scène uit toneelstuk De kaartlegster' – or 'Scene from the play The Fortune Teller' – in the Netherlands sometime in the mid-19th century. Rochussen was renowned for his illustrations of daily life, often with a satirical edge. Here, we see characters in what appears to be a theatrical production, indicated by the backdrop and the exaggerated costumes. The central figure, a well-dressed gentleman, seems to be receiving a fortune from a seated woman, while others look on with curiosity. Lithography, a relatively new technology at the time, allowed for mass production of images. It democratized art, making it accessible to a wider audience beyond the traditional elite. Rochussen’s choice of subject and medium reflects the changing social landscape of the time, where art was increasingly engaging with everyday life. As historians, we can delve into the play itself, the role of fortune-telling in 19th-century Dutch society, and the broader context of the rise of print culture to better understand this image. Art, as this piece exemplifies, is always embedded in its social and institutional context.