Onthoofding van Johan van Oldenbarnevelt, 1619 1782 - 1784

Curator: This print by Simon Fokke, made between 1782 and 1784, depicts the execution of Johan van Oldenbarnevelt in 1619. It’s currently held at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Goodness, what a stark scene. The stark black and white engraving really intensifies the grim feeling, doesn’t it? It's like all the light has been sucked out. Curator: Indeed. The use of line is quite deliberate. Note how Fokke employs dense, cross-hatched lines to create shadow, thereby enhancing the drama. It is a very Baroque treatment of a grim historical moment. Editor: Baroque, yes, but also... well, theatrical, I think. Everyone seems posed, the guards arranged almost like a chorus. Except the poor soul kneeling of course. I feel like I am viewing the action on stage, far more than some genuine recording. What do you feel about its impact? Curator: The staging is key. The high vantage point offers a detached view, as if history is unfolding before us in a meticulously crafted composition. The backdrop of the cityscape, complete with a towering church spire, lends an air of solemnity and permanence. Editor: I like that solemn permanence. It contrasts nicely with the chaotic energy right in the centre, that poor man, poised to be beheaded as if frozen, while all about him is formal order. What I think I find interesting is what an eighteenth century artist chooses to extract, well, to *engrave* really, about an event from so long before. Is Fokke telling us more about the 18th Century, or the seventeenth, here? Curator: A crucial point! The historical distance undoubtedly informs Fokke’s interpretation. Perhaps he sought to reflect on themes of justice, power, and the state – themes which continue to resonate regardless of the century in which one lives. The very choice of print as a medium, disseminating the image widely, is a powerful statement in itself. Editor: Quite so. It invites scrutiny, and forces consideration upon what is truly public about this execution. As a meditation on these concepts, and given what this work has caused me to meditate on, I now feel more connected to the artwork. Curator: For me, I understand its power through the execution—pardon the pun—of its structural elements. By considering those, this print certainly achieves a compelling presence, a historical record imbued with complex meaning and artistry.