Ontvoering van Europa 1642

Curator: Immediately, I’m drawn to the softness achieved in this engraving. The scene is idyllic but imbued with tension. Editor: Indeed, a fitting sentiment for Michel Dorigny’s 1642 engraving, “The Abduction of Europa.” It illustrates the classical myth. Dorigny masterfully employs the engraving technique to convey both delicate textures and a dynamic narrative. Look at the line work, how it dictates the form and also implies volume... the clothing! I wonder about the material quality they represent... Curator: Before we dive into fabric weights, note how central the bull is in this visual narrative. A bull garlanded with flowers. Consider its symbolic potency here – virility, but also disguise and deception. Zeus, disguised as a bull, carries Europa away. That bovine form historically has stood as a sacred figure in several early Cretan representations. Editor: Yes, there’s that persistent symbolism, re-coded. But also I notice the nymphs—see how Dorigny represents them both assisting and resisting Europa’s abduction? They function within this image as markers of labor, simultaneously preparing her for her "departure" as if for ritual, as also recoiling from this moment that establishes new hierarchies for production of value and power through violence against female bodies. That act impacts material arrangements later. Curator: A forceful take! It's undeniable how art borrows, repeats, and recodes myth through visuals across generations to validate itself but often in a critical manner, as well. Notice how Europa gazes not at her abductor, but out at the viewer. It calls for something outside the narrative...recognition, solidarity? Editor: True, consider, finally, that inscription at the base! The production of text paired directly with the artistic labor gives access into understanding power. Who produced this piece, how, with what support structure. Curator: A pertinent reminder of how symbols never truly stand alone. I now have a fresh awareness regarding classical stories, no matter how romantic, that is layered and nuanced due to production values. Editor: And hopefully our listeners do too. This dance between visual symbolism and its production helps me think forward, armed with its legacy, to a better future, made more clearly through a thorough awareness about material.