Twee aanblikken van een prostaat met hypertrofie van de kwabben before 1894

Curator: Here we have “Twee aanblikken van een prostaat met hypertrofie van de kwabben”—or “Two views of a prostate with hypertrophy of the lobes”—a print, likely a drawing originally, dating from before 1894, by Albert Ludwig Sigesmund Neisser. And... wow, that's quite a sight, isn't it? Editor: Intensely clinical. Immediately I’m struck by how delicately rendered the shading is. There's this sense of quiet observation—detached but utterly committed to the intricacies of form. It makes you think about what gets represented, doesn't it? The things we elevate to "art." Curator: Absolutely. This wasn't created as "art" per se, but rather as a scientific illustration. Neisser was a renowned dermatologist and venereologist. These detailed images served a crucial purpose: medical education and documentation. Think of the context—medical textbooks were becoming increasingly visual, standardizing how physicians understood and diagnosed conditions. Editor: Standardizing…that’s a good way to put it. I see the potential for dehumanization there, or perhaps just hyper-focus. It’s fascinating how even in something meant to be objective, there's a certain subjective interpretation coming through, just by how light falls, what’s emphasized. Curator: The choice to depict the prostate in multiple views also speaks to the increasing importance of detailed anatomical understanding. Medical progress increasingly relied on careful observation, accurate representation, and dissemination of visual knowledge. The realism displayed here—the almost photorealistic quality—would have been prized. Editor: It's so alien, yet rendered with this tender care. Looking at it I imagine Neisser bent over his work, obsessively marking out every curve and lump. Is that too imaginative? Perhaps, but I sense something of his own dedication in these old lines. It's strange, this artifact. Medical progress and private human experience… Curator: It pushes us to consider where we find value, beauty even, and challenges our assumptions. In essence, a complex reflection, if somewhat… internally focused. Editor: I'll agree to that. A potent mix, for sure, even if I didn't expect to contemplate so deeply on prostate anatomy today.