Herdenkingsmonument voor Johan Christiaan Baum 1806 - 1808

Curator: Looking at this print, I’m immediately struck by the solemnity, a very classical kind of grief, with allegorical figures and a portrait of the deceased. It has a stillness and precision that feels very… intentional. Editor: Indeed. What we’re observing here is a commemorative print, titled "Herdenkingsmonument voor Johan Christiaan Baum," created between 1806 and 1808 by Jan Gerritsz. Visser. The work employs engraving and reflects both baroque and portrait styles while serving as a history painting. It is currently held at the Rijksmuseum. Curator: It's the figures that draw me in. On the left, a woman holding a cross represents faith, right? She's positioned so stoically next to the bust. There's a powerful symbolic weight to her posture. Then to the right, this almost uncomfortable image of the angel with a wreath that’s about to crown him—and the crying boy covering his face, a visual shorthand for mourning, no doubt. Editor: Precisely. Visser orchestrates an intricate iconography of loss. The obelisk looming in the background often represented steadfastness, a way of declaring commitment or constancy, which makes it even more melancholic, with the short text mentioning that this person worked to bring in Jesus Christ, and had its rewards with eternal delights in heaven. It tells of social position in connection to beliefs at that time. Curator: The detail of the lamp about to run out of oil also lends itself to that end, I can’t imagine it any other way. All those symbols combined into a picture as evidence of faith as a comfort. But, even though it is presented through the allegory of religious icons, it evokes something else on top of it, the memory and celebration of life and virtues. It speaks volumes, don’t you think? Editor: It absolutely does. The memorial’s visual language constructs a specific narrative about social impact, doesn’t it? I am particularly moved when comparing how his memory, faith and good work is related with religious metaphors. A reminder of cultural values and how grief intertwines itself into visual representation for us all. Curator: Seeing how images preserve memory, it reminds us about human condition overall. I like how his memory, his name are all remembered for all time. Editor: It makes you consider how a single engraved sheet can carry so much historical weight.