Allegorie op het toneelgezelschap Kunstmin spaart geen vlijt. 1722 - 1784

Simon Fokke created this allegory around 1750 using etching. Central to this image is the figure of Allegory, crowned with a flame, holding a lyre, and accompanied by symbols of industriousness, such as the beehive. The flame atop her head is reminiscent of the classical depictions of divine inspiration. We see its echoes in Renaissance art and even in modern interpretations of enlightenment. The lyre, an ancient instrument, evokes Apollo, the god of music and poetry, symbolizing harmony and creativity. But the beehive! Ah, the beehive buzzes with the essence of communal effort, a motif as old as civilization itself. From Virgil’s Georgics, celebrating agricultural life, to the guilds of the medieval era, the bee symbolizes the collective unconscious striving for order and productivity. Observe how Fokke places these symbols together, creating a tableau that stirs our collective memory of striving for cultural and artistic achievement. The flame may flicker, but the eternal quest for expression endures, passed down through the ages.