Portret van Joannes Deknatel 1760 - 1762

Curator: Oh, doesn't that portrait just radiate a certain...stillness? A quiet gravitas, perhaps. Editor: Indeed. We're looking at "Portret van Joannes Deknatel," an engraving by Jacob Houbraken, made between 1760 and 1762. Curator: Engraving! It’s amazing the detail they could coax from that medium. There’s such controlled energy in all those lines. Like a very, very patient storm. Editor: Precisely. The Baroque influence is evident, particularly in the dramatic play of light and shadow and the subject's rather composed demeanor. Notice the careful arrangement of the composition, drawing the eye up from the book, held by his hand. A formal and self-conscious arrangement of signs. Curator: Oh, definitely! He seems very much aware of the power dynamic that comes with sitting for a portrait. The little hint of the curtain, and shelves stuffed with books... Very strategically staged. Does it speak truth, or create one? Is that wig comfortable? I always wonder. Editor: Interesting points. Formally, those details reinforce Deknatel’s intellectual status. The books are not just props but signifiers. However, one could read the plainness of the background and the table where the sitter rests his arm, as perhaps indicating a man of intellect and learning, but devoid of the flamboyance or ornamentation one might find in some of his contemporaries. Curator: Perhaps you are correct. Although all that academia tends to hide behind itself. Still, this piece speaks to me about image control. We see what they want us to see. An official and reverent version of themselves. Editor: True. What strikes me most is how Houbraken captures that particular brand of 18th-century self-possession through such technical prowess. Curator: A skill which has immortalized that little glimpse behind the veil. I find it quite compelling. Editor: An intriguing final sentiment. I do hope listeners found our perspectives interesting. Thank you for listening.