March c. 1680 - 1690

Cornelis Dusart made this print, entitled “March”, using engraving and etching techniques. He used a metal plate and acid to create the image before printing it onto paper. But the magic of this image is that Dusart has chosen to depict a community snowball fight. Look closely and you can see figures laughing, throwing snowballs, and generally engaged in merry mischief. What is important is that he has elevated a commonplace scene into a kind of popular entertainment. The print is a meditation on process, labor, and the everyday. The artist isn't just showing us the snow, but the labor involved, the cooperation of the people within a community, and the physical exertion of work in a pre-industrial society. By focusing on the scene of labor and leisure, Dusart created a print that blurs the boundaries between high art and ordinary life, suggesting that the true value of art lies in its ability to capture the human spirit in all its forms.