Fall of the Giants 1662 - 1663

Editor: This is Salvator Rosa’s "Fall of the Giants," housed at the Harvard Art Museums. It depicts a chaotic scene of figures overwhelmed by rocks. What do you see in this print, considering the materials used and their impact? Curator: The etching process allows for the mass production of images, democratizing access, but here the scene depicts the crushing weight of materiality itself, literally in the form of rocks. How does this tension affect our understanding? Editor: I hadn't considered the irony of a readily available image depicting such material struggle. It makes you wonder about Rosa's intended commentary. Curator: Indeed. The means of production here are almost in contradiction with the subject, making us think about the role of labor and dissemination. Thanks for the insight. Editor: Likewise! I'll be thinking about material contradictions in art much more carefully now.