Klein-duimpje c. 1843 - 1920

Curator: This watercolour and print, titled "Klein-duimpje," created sometime between 1843 and 1920 by Oswald Adalbert Sickert, offers a glimpse into a world of narrative and genre scenes. It currently resides here at the Rijksmuseum. What are your initial thoughts? Editor: Well, my first impression is one of charming unease. The vignettes create a sense of fractured storytelling, and the subdued palette contributes to a slightly unsettling mood despite the familiar fairytale subject matter. Curator: Let’s consider the materiality. As a print with added watercolor, it occupies a space between mass production and individualized craft. The layering of these two mediums creates a tension. Editor: Precisely. This tension mirrors the broader socio-economic narratives embedded in fairy tales like “Klein-duimpje”—the tensions between survival and exploitation, resourcefulness and vulnerability, that often reflect the realities of marginalized communities. The choice of a popular tale reinforces a shared understanding of societal struggles. Curator: And Sickert's process further underscores this, doesn't it? Think about the act of creating multiple prints from one drawing. Each version becomes an original artwork and part of a larger production of illustrations destined to the cultural production that can reach many. Editor: Right. Furthermore, who was buying such artwork at the time? How was it circulated, consumed, and understood across different audiences? The piece offers a historical snapshot of cultural production in relationship to power dynamics. Who has the access and ability to shape cultural values through these sorts of stories? Curator: These images would most likely accompany the book. So, think about labor of storytelling as production that connects cultural, symbolic, material, social and economic power. Editor: A key element in unpacking visual cultures indeed. The narrative is more than a story, it reveals and solidifies power structures related to identity and politics. Curator: It is very easy to think about artistic expressions or literature from different classes during industrial revolutions, yet we forget how illustrations help construct our thoughts in childhood. Editor: Exactly. Thanks to a detailed consideration of medium and circulation we gain a far better picture of the socio-political elements. Curator: Yes, and, in closing, examining "Klein-duimpje" not just as a depiction but as a layered object helps reveal a rich tapestry of labor, social narratives and material reality. Editor: Ultimately the social and cultural work art does matters even more than mere description of it. Thanks to you for walking me through it today!