April 1545 - 1608

Editor: So, this is Pieter van der Borcht the Elder's "April," a pen drawing and engraving dating from 1545 to 1608. The scale is impressive, almost overwhelming, and the detail is astonishing. What stories do you think this piece is trying to tell? Curator: It depicts the agricultural activities associated with April during that period, but more importantly, it offers us a lens through which to examine social stratification and the lived experiences of laborers. Consider the division of space: the detailed labor in the foreground versus the distant, almost idealized landscape. What does that juxtaposition communicate to you? Editor: I guess it highlights the difference between the working class and the wealthy? Curator: Precisely. And beyond class, think about gender. Who is doing what labor? Are there patterns, and what do they signify about the roles assigned to different people within this society? We can also see an early version of landscape art being employed to serve class-based and gendered politics, as well as agricultural theory and its impacts on daily life for different classes of people. What sort of crops do you think are being shown here? Editor: It looks like someone is sowing seeds in the foreground and plowing rows in the back, maybe? And in the back they’re tilling hills with hand tools. Curator: Indeed. Now think about that: Different people and their relations to the land being used in different ways. Can we ask questions about power and ownership just by examining this “genre” image? Editor: It’s wild to think about how much you can read into what seems like just a landscape picture! Curator: Exactly! And those readings can open up productive and revealing avenues of discussion and even activism when considering land management in contemporary society. What could images such as this one teach our modern viewers about power, oppression, and ownership of land? Editor: It makes me see how relevant these historical images are, even today. Thanks, I appreciate your insights! Curator: My pleasure, it’s important that we continuously reassess these works in a contemporary light!