Twee schapen 1754

Curator: Up next we have “Twee Schapen,” or “Two Sheep,” a pastoral scene etched by Joseph (I) Roos around 1754. Editor: They look rather unimpressed, to be honest. One’s standing, and the other is sprawled out as if they’ve had the longest day imaginable. There’s something quietly rebellious about its pose. Curator: That languid pose may speak to the period’s embrace of idyllic imagery, a deliberate contrast to the lives of the working classes. It served as a reminder of the natural order of things and to reinforce social hierarchies, perhaps unconsciously. Editor: So, these seemingly innocent sheep, relaxing under a tree, could actually be read as reinforcing a pretty problematic status quo? Curator: It’s vital to examine what is absent. There are no farmworkers tending to these animals. This is nature sanitized for upper-class consumption. We must see it in its socio-political moment and understand that the art often acted as a political player. Editor: I see your point. The landscape genre has long been associated with power and property, hasn't it? But let’s talk about the artistic elements. The lines are so delicate; it must have been a meticulous process. The texture of their wool seems so realistically rendered despite that delicacy. Curator: Indeed, Roos masterfully uses etching to create texture and volume, employing cross-hatching and fine lines to define the forms of the sheep and the surrounding foliage. This contributes to the picture's serene character and invites the spectator into its pastoral scene. This was one of the reasons it found an audience beyond the circles that upheld those hierarchies. The artist's popularity also mattered. Editor: That tension, between serene aesthetic and potential socio-political interpretation, is fascinating. It adds layers to an image that initially seems very straightforward. Thank you for opening my eyes! Curator: My pleasure. It’s often the quietest images that have the loudest things to say when we start to ask the right questions.