Don Quichot draagt een scheerbekken als helm 1691 - 1767

Curator: And here we have Louis Surugue’s print, dating somewhere between 1691 and 1767. It's called "Don Quichot draagt een scheerbekken als helm," or, "Don Quixote wears a shaving bowl as a helmet." Editor: Well, first blush—it's wonderfully absurd, isn’t it? This whole scene is like a perfectly pitched fever dream rendered in grayscale. Curator: Precisely! Surugue has really captured that baroque penchant for the theatrical, haven’t they? You have this brave knight in full regalia but then... that ridiculous bowl on his head. A profound moment of self-delusion. Editor: The production here is important. Printmaking makes the image accessible; we can see the democratization of narratives, the spread of Don Quixote beyond elite circles to common places, like barber shops. Did those looking at the engraving relate to Don Quixote? I imagine it served as comic relief at the time! Curator: Absolutely! Think about the skill required to create this print; the fine lines, the shading! Surugue is almost poking fun at the ideals of chivalry in Don Quixote through printmaking. Editor: It is like high art having a laugh on its own status through accessible medium! A mirror up to the self-importance of, well, wearing a chamber pot for armour. And, I find myself wondering about Surugue, about the printsellers along the rue des Noyers. It feels like we are seeing both art and commerce, imagination and its industrial distribution all at once. Curator: Right! What else strikes you? Editor: I am also struck by the light that emanates from behind. It's divine. Almost… ironic, giving the events happening on Earth. A satire between dark forests of ignorance and promised enlightenment. Curator: What a brilliant way to put it, the dance between shadow and illumination, and folly and ideal... It certainly brings this quirky little print to life. Editor: And reminds us that even in absurdity, there is light to be found, and critiques to be made.