Twee vrouwen in een atelier 1888 - 1934

Editor: This woodcut print, titled "Two Women in a Studio," made sometime between 1888 and 1934 by Willem Adrianus Grondhout and currently at the Rijksmuseum, has this stark, almost confrontational simplicity to it. It's quite arresting. What are your initial thoughts when you look at it? Curator: I immediately think about the context of artistic training for women at that time. Were they students? Working class women engaged in craft? The rough quality of the woodcut, its deliberate lack of refinement, raises questions about the artist's intent and the viewer he had in mind. Editor: That's interesting. I hadn't thought about the art world politics inherent in representing women making art. The print emphasizes their aprons and their posture suggesting labour. Does this reinforce certain social roles for women, or challenge them? Curator: It's a complicated issue. By depicting these women in a workspace, Grondhout is acknowledging their presence, even agency, in artistic creation. However, the style and medium could also be read as limiting; as setting their creativity apart from high art. What do you think about how they appear huddled in this domestic interior? Editor: It's a little claustrophobic. There is very little in terms of interior detail so it feels very focused on these two figures performing a domestic, or artistic task. Curator: It’s that ambiguity that makes it so compelling! What appears to be a quiet, simple scene also speaks volumes about the socio-political position of women and artistic labor during this time. Editor: I see what you mean. It's definitely not just a quiet genre scene. Thank you so much. Curator: A pleasure. This little woodcut holds more complexity than one would first believe.