Macbeth og heksene 1908

Editor: We're looking at "Macbeth og heksene" – that's "Macbeth and the Witches" – created by Oluf Hartmann in 1908. It's an aquatint, ink and drawing print. The atmosphere is so heavy, murky, and full of foreboding, don't you think? What do you see in this piece that maybe I'm missing? Curator: Oh, absolutely! It’s a dark, swirling vortex of ambition and the supernatural, isn't it? The stark blacks and whites create a sense of unease, perfectly capturing the tragic mood of Shakespeare's play. Look at how Hartmann uses the aquatint to suggest the witches are almost melting into the landscape. What emotions does that evoke in you? Does it feel chaotic or eerily controlled? Editor: Chaotic for sure, it's hard to discern any individual figure; they are sort of merged together. But does that blurring make the witches seem more or less powerful, in your opinion? Curator: Interesting question! For me, that very merging represents a kind of collective, primal power, a force that transcends individual control. Hartmann might be suggesting that evil isn't about single actors, but something more pervasive, more of an atmosphere. You know, like that weird cousin everyone's got: slightly embarrassing, slightly alarming, but undeniably part of the family. What about the figure of Macbeth himself, can you see the tormented expression on his face? Editor: Now that you point it out, I think I see him lurking in the shadows on the right! I didn't pick him out before, maybe that's Hartmann's point, to shroud him? Curator: Precisely! It reminds me of that old adage – the greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist! Hartmann captures that perfectly here, doesn't he? I learned a lot today - it's been insightful for me to re-assess Hartmann's technique to reinforce the Shakespeare narrative and how evil lurks everywhere. Thanks! Editor: Likewise. The symbolic blurring to infer power has expanded my insight into symbolic prints. I am looking forward to diving further into narrative prints of the era!