Heilige Hieronymus als boeteling in de woestijn 1511

Editor: So this is Hans Baldung’s “Heilige Hieronymus als boeteling in de woestijn”, or “Saint Jerome as a penitent in the wilderness," from 1511. It looks like a pen drawing or maybe an engraving. The composition is so detailed, and there's a somber feel to it. What strikes you when you look at this piece? Curator: The thing about Baldung, and especially with this piece, is the way the landscape *itself* seems to participate in Jerome's penitence. Notice how the twisted trees almost echo the saint’s own writhing form, a kind of mirroring. Do you get a sense of that connection? The wilderness is less a backdrop, more of a fellow sufferer. It reminds me a bit of some of those tortured landscapes in German Expressionist cinema. The city looming on the hill mocks Jerome and mirrors our daily temptations and desires. The Saint's connection with the Lion can also be a connection to one's carnal being which must be subdued through contrition. I sometimes wonder about the guilt the artist must have had within to manifest it on this piece? Editor: I hadn't considered the landscape as an active element. I was too focused on the figure of Jerome. That's fascinating! It's like the world is mirroring his internal struggle. Curator: Exactly! It's a raw emotional landscape, almost as if he engraved not just lines, but the echoes of screams of inner sorrow, long repressed but needing a release. You also might consider why the artist choose that particular moment to capture for posterity. What kind of statement does it want to make and about whom? Is it a story for a redemption, perhaps even Baldung's? Editor: So much to unpack in such a tiny detailed space! Thank you. Curator: My pleasure! It makes me yearn for an honest evaluation of who I am.