Saint Zoe c. 17th century

Curator: This is Jacques Callot's "Saint Zoe," a small etching held at the Harvard Art Museums. I’m immediately struck by the contrast between the delicate lines and the gruesome subject matter. It's an odd mix. Editor: Yes, and the labor! Look at the fineness of those lines, the cross-hatching suggesting shadow. How long must it have taken to produce an image of this detail, this size, with that level of precision? And for what market? Curator: Well, Callot was known for his printmaking, and prints were relatively accessible, a way to disseminate imagery widely. The martyrdom of a saint depicted here, would serve both devotional and didactic purposes. Editor: There's something terribly unsettling about the figure tending the fire under Saint Zoe's hanging body; the casualness of it. But those precise lines somehow distance me. Almost like it's a story removed from reality. Curator: It makes you think about the role of the artist as storyteller, or even a kind of reporter, carefully documenting an event for wider circulation. Editor: Indeed. It is a stark reminder of the power of images, both to inspire and to disturb.