Christian V 1625 - 1682

Curator: This painting, rendered in oil, depicts Christian V, and dates from 1625 to 1682. Editor: My initial reaction is, “Rough.” There’s a rawness in the texture, an immediacy in the rendering. I’m struck by the almost violent application of pigment, particularly in the face. Curator: The artist, Abraham Wuchters, operated in a specific sociopolitical landscape. Considering Wuchters' positioning within court circles, how does the material presentation of the sitter, the sumptuous fabrics versus that roughly hewn face, perform within a broader narrative about power, control, and visibility during this period? Does it subtly challenge conventions of idealised portraiture? Editor: Absolutely. Look at how the red velvet of his coat is treated—soft and inviting. The bow at the neck too. The material wealth is literally foregrounded, whereas the human—ostensibly the subject—is presented almost crudely. Curator: In what way could the artist’s material choices reflect broader shifts in patronage, taste, or perhaps even nascent notions of national identity? Consider that the art was evolving alongside significant historical events. Editor: This seems almost a deliberate flaunting of labor, the artistic labor but also the sitter’s—or his predecessor’s—acquisition of material wealth. And it raises questions about what labour supported it all. How many invisible hands helped create that collar, grow the silk, mine the dyes? Curator: It’s about power. The artist here seems less concerned with projecting unblemished authority, and more willing to reveal a degree of interiority, even vulnerability, perhaps offering a more nuanced reflection on leadership itself, and what making art meant. Editor: Maybe Wuchters had a good client or got away with a slightly radical take... Art and power... what’s changed, right? Curator: Precisely. Thinking about what that means about this painting being housed today, is important. Editor: Indeed, an echo of power dynamics then and now—revealed, perhaps unconsciously, in the very materials of the work.