Bergrede 1720 - 1728

Editor: Joseph Mulder's engraving, "Bergrede," created sometime between 1720 and 1728 and housed in the Rijksmuseum, feels so… illustrative. It's like stepping into a storybook scene of Jesus preaching, complete with incredibly detailed foliage and deeply contemplative figures. What jumps out at you when you look at this piece? Curator: Oh, this one sings to me of faith, and also doubt, rendered in strokes so precise, they practically whisper. Look at how Mulder frames Jesus against that distant, almost ethereal landscape—it's less about literal depiction, more about a feeling, right? And those clustered figures! Notice the various reactions - some rapt, some weary, a few almost hostile. Doesn't it just spark curiosity about their inner worlds and struggles? Do you get a sense that this artist knew something about the interior life of a human? Editor: Definitely! I was especially drawn to that cluster on the right, the figures with really aged, etched faces—the heavy shading adds to a sense of concern, I think? Almost foreshadowing… Curator: Yes! It’s interesting that you focus on the shading, because Baroque art really relies on dramatic contrasts. Look at the difference between that deeply shaded corner, versus the light falling on Jesus, illuminating him. Mulder is asking us to observe the drama. But even within the darkness, isn't there also a sort of profound beauty and resilience shining through those aged faces? Editor: Yes, I can totally see that, a resilience that's… knowing. I hadn’t thought about that. Curator: Consider the possibility of a shared experience, an implicit sense of suffering among the common person that binds them to a collective humanity with each other, and the divine. Perhaps. Editor: So, is Mulder hinting at some form of empathy between people, as a core principle? Something of which the teachings are an appeal? Curator: It is interesting food for thought. I love how it makes you wonder… Editor: Thanks, I feel like I understand it more now!