En jernstøberibygning 1790 - 1890

Editor: So this is "An Iron Foundry Building," an aquatint print made sometime between 1790 and 1890, currently housed at the SMK. It definitely evokes this gritty, industrial feel, even back then. What jumps out at you when you look at it? Curator: Oh, what a delicious print! It's the dance between the picturesque and the frankly, unpleasant. See how the artist, Haas, positions this belching, fiery ironworks within a kind of romantic landscape? There's even a moon peeking through the smoke! The industrial age was often seen through this lens – simultaneously a source of wonder and a disruptive force. Does that reading of it resonate for you, I wonder? Editor: I can see that, the composition creates an appealing rural landscape, with some dark chimneys that seem a bit intrusive! But what about those figures down below? Are they romanticized too, or does the artist hint at the reality of factory work? Curator: Now *that's* the key question. Look closely. They’re small, yes, almost silhouetted, but they're also rendered with a certain… liveliness, wouldn’t you agree? Not heroic, perhaps, but certainly not devoid of agency. It feels as though they occupy and define that space more than it threatens them, do you get that sense? The almost theatrical lighting emphasizes their role in this industrial ballet. I love the balance he strikes. Editor: That's a great way to put it - an industrial ballet. It definitely makes me appreciate the image a little differently, looking past the industrial blight toward the people living there! Curator: Exactly! And perhaps questioning our own notions of what constitutes "picturesque." Editor: Well, thanks! I hadn't considered all of that. Now I will every time I see a landscape like this, hah!