Jan Bart verovert een Hollands fregat, 1678 1806

Curator: Yves Marie Le Gouaz produced this engraving, titled "Jan Bart verovert een Hollands fregat," around 1806. It depicts a naval battle from 1678. The artwork is currently held in the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first impression is the controlled chaos of it all. It's black and white, obviously, an engraving, but the energy is undeniable. Those ships locked in combat amidst smoke... it’s surprisingly vibrant. Curator: Engravings like this were crucial for disseminating information and cultivating national pride. Think of it as early mass media. Jan Bart was a celebrated naval hero, and this image reinforces that heroic narrative, playing on Dutch anxieties and rivalry during the Napoleonic era. Editor: So, propaganda, but make it art! I see what you mean. The detail is impressive for something meant to be distributed widely. There's a sort of romantic quality, too. The isolated scene, that intense confrontation… Curator: It captures the genre of history painting. Look at how Le Gouaz has composed the scene. There is text written at the bottom explaining that the piece represents when, in March of 1678, Jean-Bart captured a 32 cannon, Dutch coast-guarding vessel, right outside of Texel. This narrative component was central to its public consumption. The public wanted to be informed and the elites used art for the purpose of promoting nationalism. Editor: You can almost smell the gunpowder and hear the cannon fire. The smoke almost obscures everything, but you still feel that clash of wood and iron. And in the text we can read in French underneath the drawing, the whole scene takes on a new intensity. Curator: It served a clear political function in its time, reinforcing national identity and lionizing military figures. However, in our context today, we view it more for its craftsmanship and insight into 19th-century views of naval history. Editor: It is amazing how things changed, isn’t it? From propaganda to object of curiosity. I will never tire of art's constant shapeshifting in order to fulfill our curiosity about life itself.