Vogelen 1850 - 1881

Curator: Here we have "Vogelen" by Dirk Noothoven van Goor, a work dating from approximately 1850 to 1881. It resembles an old engraving, perhaps intended for a children's publication. What are your first impressions? Editor: A field guide! Or a natural history illustration—compact and neatly arranged with its six vignettes, it exudes the earnest didacticism of its era. There's a delicate touch, particularly in the shading of the flora and fauna. Curator: Indeed. Each image depicts a different bird, paired with a description below. These birds are all presented within different settings that speak volumes. The Kolibrietje, for instance, flits around tropical plants near what looks like a young girl, while the domestic canary appears against the backdrop of domestic life with children. It makes us think about mankind's ever-changing connection to the wild. Editor: Agreed, these juxtapositions say quite a lot about shifting cultural attitudes. I am very much intrigued by the visual cadence established by those frames; their consistent structure helps create an overall harmony and readability, particularly in conjunction with the aging, neutral-toned paper that acts as its grounding base. Curator: For me, the layout reminds me of memory palaces and even of early internet interfaces, actually; they provide ways to categorize and contain knowledge, even now. The repetition has an almost comforting effect; birds can come and go, be caged or wild, and even cross different ecosystems, but their essence remains preserved on paper through this composition. Editor: It's a curious piece, this melding of scientific illustration and perhaps even personal documentation into one. What begins as merely the description of different species eventually suggests to me a complex historical picture regarding scientific pursuits, popular culture and modes of graphical information presentation. Curator: Yes, that’s also my reading of this, too! Looking closer makes one wonder about the future trajectories of this art in particular but the art medium itself also. What birds will be most intriguing to capture visually and categorize decades or centuries later? What are the stories to come? Editor: This close observation brings a certain amount of excitement when pondering its context within a larger scheme of images from then and onward.