Bloemen 1770 - 1790

Curator: Looking at this artwork, "Bloemen", a floral etching and print created anonymously sometime between 1770 and 1790, currently residing here at the Rijksmuseum, I am struck by its delicate execution. Editor: The composition is deceptively simple, isn't it? At first glance, it's just a collection of flowers, but the single-tone red palette creates a uniformity and an interesting sense of nostalgia and makes you think of old books or faded botanical studies, almost a specimen for documentation. Curator: Exactly! And considering this print was made in an age obsessed with classifying the natural world and during the rise of industrial printmaking, one might think about the cultural status given to printmakers themselves. They become the disseminators of botanical knowledge. The artist makes visible the process of labor and of knowing nature itself. Editor: You raise a really important point about access to knowledge. This piece speaks to the ways that natural beauty could be both celebrated and commodified through artistic mediums, as they were sold en masse for the leisure of private citizens. Who was accessing this ‘knowledge’ then, and what were they using it for? Curator: Absolutely. What's equally compelling to me is its technical facility. The precise hatching and cross-hatching create a tonal range in only one color. It appears to emulate chalk drawings which were considered highly collectible at the time. And consider how time-consuming each flower’s image might have been to carve into metal—there's the value of the material, the value of labor, and finally, its subsequent value for the bourgeoisie. Editor: When you place the focus on the floral motif itself, it really becomes obvious how they were being coded and used for propaganda. The era's burgeoning interest in botanical illustration intertwined deeply with power dynamics related to national identity and expansionism. These blooms start to look less like a sweet decorative bouquet, and more like a very strategic display, doesn’t it? Curator: Indeed. The materials here are very telling. Editor: Reflecting on "Bloemen," I think it’s easy to just enjoy the flowers on the surface level; but taking into account its history and how art and consumerism reinforce one another can be transformative. Curator: It gives us much to consider about our own values surrounding knowledge, labor, and the environment, doesn't it?