De koninklijke prauw van de koning van Borneo, 1601 1601 - 1646

Editor: This engraving, dating from sometime between 1601 and 1646, depicts "De koninklijke prauw van de koning van Borneo," or, "The Royal Prau of the King of Borneo". The stark lines create such a fascinating image. What's your perspective on it? Curator: Well, this print is fascinating in how it displays the labour and material resources required for such a vessel. We often focus on the artistry, but what about the extraction of timber, the forging of tools, the weaving of the sails? How did those materials shape the artistic and economic vision of the time? Editor: That's a great point. We rarely consider the physical realities behind even seemingly simple objects. Curator: Exactly! The labor needed for the King of Borneo’s ship extends to those who harvested and prepared materials and those who manned the oars, powering this royal display. It's important to remember that artistic creation isn't divorced from the social and economic circumstances surrounding its production. What social inequalities are reflected in the details here, perhaps overlooked at first glance? Editor: The difference in status, perhaps, between those seated under the canopy and those at the oars? The print almost monumentalizes that division of labor. Curator: Precisely! How does the *process* of engraving – the repetitive etching of lines –mirror the repetitive, manual labor represented *within* the image itself? Is the print celebrating, or perhaps subtly critiquing, this social structure through its very means of production? Editor: It's a much more complex image than I initially thought. Thinking about the materials and labour involved really opens it up. Curator: Indeed. By understanding the materials and means of production, we gain a deeper understanding of not just the art, but the world in which it was created and the relationships embedded within it. Editor: Thank you, this really gave me new avenues for approaching art!