Amazone 1855 - 1904

Curator: It looks like a dream on paper; light, delicate, maybe even fragile. Editor: That’s a fine initial impression for what we know as "Amazone", an engraving by Arnoud Schaepkens. The dating is a bit vague, somewhere between 1855 and 1904. Curator: “Amazone”, yet there’s this hazy quality that undermines a powerful title. The woman seems more a figure of reverie than action, which feels enhanced by the delicate linework. I wonder, what's being remembered here? What symbolic role does she carry? Editor: The material execution and the way prints are traditionally circulated—multiple impressions, often small-scale like this—suggest a wide distribution for potentially ideological purposes. Given the period, how does this reflect, or perhaps subvert, popular ideas of female empowerment tied to nationhood? Curator: Indeed! We see women as allegorical figures embodying nations, liberty, justice. The horse adds to that… a traditional emblem of power, harnessed and guided. It would be important to analyze which artistic tradition informs its symbolism—classicism, romanticism— to see how Schaepkens is positioning this figure in broader visual culture. Editor: Considering this as a print, it immediately connects us to a tradition of easily reproducible imagery aimed for wider audiences beyond elite circles. How the line quality affects its aura— its commodity value— against an original artwork, reveals certain social dynamics surrounding artistic production in this period. I am quite keen to examine further the impact and reach of the prints such as "Amazone." Curator: I am struck again by its ambiguousness and softness, despite what "Amazon" invokes historically. Thanks for your interesting views; I find it's more dreamlike than ever now. Editor: Thanks to you! Understanding its materiality encourages thinking beyond aesthetic concerns, touching upon its historical influence, cultural value and distribution.