Titelprent met cartouche voor een serie met paardenrassen c. 1590 - 1637

Curator: Ah, this engraving just vibrates with history! We’re looking at “Titelprent met cartouche voor een serie met paardenrassen,” or title print with cartouche for a series with horse breeds, made sometime between 1590 and 1637 by Egbert Van Panderen. Editor: My initial impression is, "ornate chaos!" Look at the framing, it’s like baroque gone wild – horses turning into seashells playing trumpets framing the text. But what's truly striking is the texture. I'm curious about the process. Curator: It’s fascinating. Van Panderen used engraving, a graphic art technique, to achieve that. It involves cutting lines into a metal plate, inking it, and then pressing it onto paper. Imagine the skill and labor involved! Editor: Exactly! You get a very crisp line, which here, allows him to create depth through all of this swirling imagery and Latin script. It is not only ornamental, it probably advertises various horse breeds; this piece almost becomes proto-capitalist in nature as it documents luxury animal goods. Curator: Absolutely. And beyond mere advertisement, this reflects a very specific time where animals held aristocratic power in military might, as well as offered symbolic weight with mythical creatures; horses meant wealth and power. I think this engraving attempts to capture and translate that symbolically and materially through detailed craftsmanship for dissemination. Editor: I wonder what sort of labor was involved with an item of this complexity and beauty? We need to consider those aspects as well, the exploitation of labor to render the scene before us. Even a seemingly straightforward item involves numerous, interconnected production chains. Curator: A fair and crucial point to ponder in tandem with its impact. To consider the art, and labor that went into it both, to reveal deeper contexts and conversations. Thank you! Editor: Indeed! Analyzing these engravings requires an awareness that incorporates production processes alongside design intentions and social uses.