Erasmus Montanus 1921

Editor: This is Axel Kittendorff's 1921 ink and woodcut print, "Erasmus Montanus," currently held at the Statens Museum for Kunst. It's incredibly detailed and feels almost theatrical in its composition, like a scene frozen mid-performance. What jumps out at you when you look at it? Curator: Oh, it's absolutely a stage! A perfect little societal drama unfolding. The central figure, Erasmus, is clearly causing a stir amongst this gathering of townspeople. Notice the whirlwind of line work creating movement and chaos around him? It is quite a character piece – that smug expression of his! It makes me wonder what he’s just said to provoke such reactions. Editor: There's definitely a tension. Some seem concerned, others amused, almost like he's challenging the accepted norms of the space. Do you think this could be interpreted as a commentary on social dynamics or perhaps intellectual arrogance? Curator: A juicy read! Exactly! I feel it screams "intellectual arrogance", perfectly captured in his defiant stance and that slightly too-knowing grin. And it’s not just his expression, but also the contrast – everyone is a kind of squat figure but his almost spindly thin arrogance – yes a great social dynamic. The rooster, chickens and books also create a kind of theatre of absurdity! It makes you consider if Erasmus' education is serving him – or just isolating him from the everyday, and indeed perhaps turning him into a bit of a ridiculous figure himself? Editor: It’s funny you point that out, I also see the book, with the chicken pecking at it, as undermining Erasmus' pomposity. This feels like quite a sardonic piece, then! Curator: Precisely. It’s the humour for me - you have such drama and seriousness portrayed but its really just the humourous mocking of society – always stuck up individuals who like to ruffle others the wrong way and prove others are lesser than. That rooster’s got a better handle on things. It is that juxtaposition that keeps me hooked. You think its just to get a reaction, you even smirk yourself in arrogance, until you realize its a little funny! Editor: I'll definitely keep that in mind the next time I try to over-intellectualize things! I now see more of this reading - I had been quite stuffy! Curator: That's art isn’t it, we go in as one, and out with a new perspective.