The Kneeling Hermit Facing Left 

Editor: Here we have "The Kneeling Hermit Facing Left", an etching by Andries Both. It feels incredibly intimate, like catching someone in a moment of deep contemplation. What catches your eye when you look at this work? Curator: Well, my first thought spirals toward the theater of the everyday. See how the figure, seemingly lost in devotion, is grounded by that almost comical object hanging from his waist? It whispers of practicalities, of a life beyond the spiritual. What kind of everyday thing you would take to such place to be connected? Editor: It does make him seem less ethereal and more human. Perhaps it is for practical things. Is that what grounds this baroque artwork? Curator: Grounding, yes, but also complication. The Baroque loved this push and pull – the soaring heights of emotion tangled with the stubbornness of earthly existence. Consider the line work – so delicate, yet forming such a sturdy figure, pressed against an unseen landscape. Almost like looking at this person trough a window, as we all watch other's people drama from far away, or closer sometimes... Editor: I see it now. It's not just a picture of pious solitude, but a scene vibrating with internal contrasts. How very baroque! Curator: Exactly. It’s in the tight composition itself, you see? Look at the economy of line. It suggests vastness with just the lightest touch and also detail within the hermit’s dress and devotion. That's some good observation. This dance between presence and absence creates this feeling... Don't you feel something? Editor: I feel seen! And ready for a long walk to ponder such an unusual approach to devotion.