Drieluik: Maria met Christus op schoot, en twee groepen van twee apostelen 1831 - 1890

Editor: This is Jean Baptiste Pierre Michiels’ "Drieluik: Maria met Christus op schoot, en twee groepen van twee apostelen", created sometime between 1831 and 1890. It’s a drawing and print, currently held at the Rijksmuseum. The triptych format feels both traditional and a little fragmented. I am curious about your take. What symbols strike you? Curator: The grouping into a triptych immediately invokes altarpieces, framing Mary and Jesus in a sacred space. The apostles flank this central image like witnesses. Look at how Michiels renders the figure on the left, with a quill, recording or documenting—perhaps alluding to the creation of the Gospels, lending visual authority to the scene. Does that act of transcription, of making visible, suggest a particular role to you? Editor: I see that. It's like he's capturing the 'true' image for posterity. Does the presence of the scribes lend more cultural weight than spiritual to the scene? Curator: Not necessarily more, but certainly a complementary cultural weight, intertwining the spiritual and intellectual realms. It is about making manifest what is sensed but unseen. Note also the decorative details behind Mary - geometric forms reminiscent of tapestries; suggesting opulence and perhaps indirectly, worldly power. These subtle symbols enhance cultural significance and resonate over time. How do you interpret her somber expression? Editor: It suggests she's already aware of what's to come, weighed down by prophecy. So the drawing is referencing both earthly and spiritual power? Curator: Precisely! The artist seems interested in imbuing both with meaning. Every line contributes to that rich tapestry of interpretation, from the arrangement of figures to surface decoration. The combination definitely gives a unique context of familiar subjects that continue to have meanings today. Editor: This exploration shows there is a complex range of expressions! The layers are there beneath the surface.