Juli 1722 - 1784

Editor: This is "Juli," a pen and etching print by Simon Fokke, dating sometime between 1722 and 1784. The busyness of the scene strikes me; there are so many small figures and details. How do you interpret this work, considering the period it comes from? Curator: Consider the figures. They’re at rest, taking refreshment from bowls and drinks; yet, one woman seems to brandish a rake, gesturing at the activity behind them, the hay cart and laden figures disappearing into the village in the background. The figures carry with them associations. What symbolic meanings might such figures convey about the life of laborers in the fields? Editor: I hadn’t really thought of that, beyond just seeing it as a scene of workers in the fields. Are you suggesting Fokke might be commenting on something deeper about labour and life? Curator: The placement of figures often suggests status and social commentary in art of this period. In this era, such depictions also played an important role in fostering national identity and celebrating the virtues of rural life. Notice the gaze. What does it convey about those who look at them? Do we relate, or are we voyeurs? Editor: That makes me consider my own position as a viewer much more actively. It’s more than just a pretty scene from a bygone era; there are layers of meaning about labour and the everyday. It sounds like the birds carry a kind of freedom as well, circling what cannot be touched. Curator: Indeed. Fokke invites us to see these individuals not merely as anonymous laborers, but as figures embodying enduring aspects of human existence and the natural world. It’s a meditation on permanence and the cycle of work, the temporality of their place in that moment. Editor: This engraving gives me a lot to think about regarding the lives represented and what it means to witness their story over time.