Opstanding van Christus

Jan Wandelaar created this print of the Resurrection of Christ sometime in the first half of the 18th century in the Netherlands. It depicts a triumphant Christ stepping out of his tomb, while an angel hoists him up. The Dutch Republic was then a Protestant country. While it had gained independence from the Catholic Spanish Empire, it was still deeply influenced by religious ideas, which saturated all aspects of its culture. The visual language of Wandelaar's print borrows from earlier Catholic art, and the composition resembles a stage design. This may be because Wandelaar worked as a theatrical designer. Prints were an important medium for circulating visual ideas at this time. The Rijksmuseum's collection of prints allows us to understand what kinds of images were available to people at the time. We can look at printed books and pamphlets to understand the original context of the work, and consider how it might have been received.