Girl with a Spade 1873

Curator: "Girl with a Spade" by Jozef Israëls, etched in 1873. It’s currently housed here at The Art Institute of Chicago. Editor: Oh, it’s moody, isn’t it? All those scratchy lines... It makes me think of a sad, quiet day. Almost feels like you could smell the damp earth. Curator: The artist clearly situates this girl within the Dutch Realist tradition, calling to question gender roles in the 19th-century agrarian landscape. Editor: Realism… I get it. But beyond that, it’s like a poem about being alone, maybe? The way she's positioned by that solitary tree… feels weighty. Is it just me? Curator: There's definitely a sense of isolation and contemplation. We can explore that through Israëls' exploration of the feminine ideal that runs parallel to many of the Victorian artistic philosophies that romanticize nature. The image prompts questions about power dynamics and labor in that particular era. Editor: It also feels like her whole life's ahead of her but then there’s that resignation in the slump of her shoulders. Even the birds look like they’re flying away from her. Curator: Consider, too, the technical choices—the medium of etching allows for those expressive lines you mention. It serves to further the dialogue surrounding poverty, opportunity, and lived experience. The intersectionality informs not just subject matter but also composition choices. Editor: Mmm, the hatching does add to the somber effect. And it also adds a raw intimacy; as though you just stumbled on to this girl in this moment as it happens. Curator: The figure is clearly centered, with the spade at hand. Through art, this creates both agency, on the one hand, and the implications of physical labor and its impact on the subject, on the other. Editor: So, I went from feeling a quiet, sad weightiness in my gut to thinking about class, agency and opportunity. Which I suppose is why we’re both here. Thanks for digging in, with a critical spade, if you will. Curator: Just remember that art provides a valuable lens for critically examining issues that we still find to be quite relevant today.