Huishouden van Jan Steen 1848 - 1881

Lutkie & Cranenburg created this print, “Huishouden van Jan Steen” using etching. The composition is divided into twelve distinct panels, each a microcosm of daily life rendered in sharp, definitive lines. The use of etching allows for intricate detail, creating a rich texture that invites the eye to linger over each scene. The absence of color focuses our attention on form and narrative. The artists leverage linear perspective to create depth within these confined spaces, yet the overall effect is one of flattening, of reducing three-dimensional space to a series of planes. This compression underscores the print’s function as a commentary on society, compressing the complexities of human behavior into easily digestible visual anecdotes. Here, the mundane becomes monumental, charged with a symbolic weight that destabilizes conventional notions of domesticity. The artists question fixed meanings, prompting us to reconsider the relationship between art and life, representation and reality.