Kindervreugd / of plaatjes voor kleine teekenaars en prentevriendjes; door R. G. Rijkens 1827

Editor: This print, called "Kindervreugd", which roughly translates to "Children's Joy", was made in 1827 by R.G. Rijkens. It’s a lithograph, a kind of early printmaking, and the little scenes have a sort of charming simplicity to them. I’m curious though – it almost feels like a page from a children’s book but without the narrative... how do you interpret this work? Curator: Oh, this takes me back to my own childhood fascination with picture books! Imagine it not just as a precursor to children’s books, but almost a choose-your-own-adventure in image form. The scenes, individually charming – the pot cooking over a fire, the bags overflowing with what I imagine are treats, the dapper Hussar – all ignite a child’s imagination, right? What stories do *you* see in each vignette? Do they whisper hints or shout out loud? Editor: I hadn't considered it that way. The descriptions underneath – "The pot is cooking," "A mountain is high" – seemed like just that: descriptions. Curator: Perhaps, but descriptions can be invitations. In this context I consider them as launching points to fantastic places. Rijkens seems interested in visual play, right? These almost function as miniature worlds, wouldn’t you agree? Editor: That’s such a nice perspective. Instead of just reading the captions, envisioning worlds within them... it’s opened the whole page up! Thanks! Curator: My pleasure. That is what art should always do. Isn't that its own special sort of ‘Kindervreugd?’