Discrezione 1640

Curator: This is "Discrezione," a Baroque-style print created around 1640 by Johann Friedrich Greuter. It's currently housed here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first impression is of cascading forms—a flurry of figures arranged on multiple levels. The classical architecture recedes into a soft vanishing point in the background. Curator: Yes, there’s a sense of constructed space and deliberate hierarchy here. The female figure at the top of the stairs embodies the allegorical virtue of discretion. Consider her role, elevated both literally and figuratively above the others. Editor: Absolutely. The composition directs our gaze to her balanced pose, a leaf extending from her right hand, while cherubs behind present a bounty. It's all about visual equilibrium. The artist has skillfully used line to suggest form and light. The varying thicknesses create areas of focus, guiding our eye. Curator: Let’s not forget the kneeling figures on the stairs. Their supplication indicates a desire for her grace. It speaks to societal structures of power and perhaps gender roles of the time. Discretion, in this context, is tied to access, influence, and possibly even survival within certain social circles. What price does such behavior command of women throughout history? Editor: A pointed query. Formally, this work presents discretion through gesture and staging—almost theatrical, wouldn't you say? Observe the way the draping fabric both conceals and reveals the human form, adding movement and drama. It almost contrasts with her calm expression. Curator: True, and the staging points to how concepts such as "virtue" are performed and often policed, particularly within communities marked by economic or social scarcity. The figures’ clothing—or lack thereof—can also signify layers of difference, especially relevant to power dynamics of the era. Editor: It’s intriguing how Greuter blends allegory with precise lines, achieving clarity amidst a complex arrangement of bodies. It provides a stage on which multiple ideas collide. Curator: Exactly. Studying “Discrezione” through the lens of gender and power exposes many ways such allegories have been, and continue to be, culturally significant. Editor: I leave our listeners with a consideration of the way Greuter's linear dance portrays that central figure's controlling balance so explicitly.