Non met een lezend kind 1756

Curator: Here we have Pietro Antonio Novelli’s "Non met een lezend kind," made around 1756. It’s currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: It's a tender scene, wouldn't you agree? Almost monochromatic, giving it a serene feel. The detail in the folds of their garments is quite striking for an engraving. Curator: Novelli employed engraving on paper, using ink to bring the scene to life. You can almost see the textures; the weave of the nun's habit, the smooth pages of the book. He uses hatching to render volume in their figures. The materiality speaks of refined skill. The quality of the paper itself would also have played a role in the print's final appearance. Editor: Precisely. And that reproduction is crucial to understanding its public function. This wasn’t just an image for private devotion; its creation as a print implies a wider dissemination. Consider the historical context—the role of the Church, the burgeoning market for devotional images, the literacy rates…it all plays a part. It presents a careful orchestration of ideal maternal influence: a nun guiding a young child's reading, subtly reinforcing values and proper roles in society. Curator: Right. I mean the printing process would allow for multiple, nearly identical copies to circulate which raises the question of artistic intent versus the capitalist mechanisms for mass visual communications. Was Novelli necessarily attempting to engage this directly, or was he mainly pursuing craft mastery to support commissions, or, potentially both? Editor: It's also important to consider who controlled the distribution. Churches and religious orders were key players in shaping the public's visual diet. Prints like this provided readily accessible iconography for a population that was often excluded from accessing other forms of knowledge or higher learning. It's also quite telling of Renaissance portraiture and art's general influence, especially in places such as Italy. Curator: An excellent point, the artwork is clearly reflective of an early renaissance. Editor: Indeed, considering the impact of this historical context helps shed light on how imagery actively engaged in societal dialogue at this specific time. Curator: Well, considering the medium and its inherent qualities, and considering it more expansively allows for the generation of more questions. Editor: A productive way to approach an artwork’s narrative, and an indication of just how intertwined its many layers are.