Twee jongens spelen het spel tiepelen Possibly 1650 - 1657

Editor: Here we have "Two Boys Playing Tip-Cat," a pen and ink drawing possibly made between 1650 and 1657 by Harmen ter Borch. It feels so immediate and candid, like a quick snapshot of daily life. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: What grabs me is the dynamic between these figures and what that reflects about Dutch Golden Age society. Look at the boy holding the bat, poised and ready; this game, tip-cat, requires skill and, often, some degree of privilege to have the leisure to play. Do you notice how Ter Borch renders their clothing? Editor: Yes, the detail in their clothes seems pretty intentional, especially compared to the empty background. Curator: Precisely! Ter Borch is likely commenting on the burgeoning merchant class and their aspirations. The seemingly simple scene speaks to complex issues of class and access to leisure. In what ways, might we read the quiet figure of the second boy? What does the downcast gaze infer, if anything? Editor: Maybe it’s about the contrast—the active participant versus the more passive observer, highlighting different roles even within the same social strata. Curator: Exactly! It encourages us to question whose stories get told and how leisure is portrayed in art. And Ter Borch made some choices about the visual presentation: do you think he succeeds, and does that reflect in its legacy in the Rijksmuseum today? Editor: This has made me rethink what I initially saw as just a simple genre scene. Now, I see it as a commentary on social dynamics. Curator: And that's the power of art – to reveal the hidden complexities within the seemingly mundane. I'm going to look at sketches differently.