Graflegging van Christus 1589 - 1615

Editor: So, here we have “Graflegging van Christus,” or "The Entombment of Christ", an engraving from somewhere between 1589 and 1615, after a design by Venetian artist, Tintoretto. The engraving itself is by Lucas Kilian, and it’s here at the Rijksmuseum. The sheer density of figures really strikes me, everyone is overcome with grief! What catches your eye when you look at this work? Curator: It’s that swirling chaos, isn't it? That baroque drama played out in meticulously rendered lines. It reminds me of being caught in a riptide of emotion. Kilian wasn't just copying Tintoretto, he was translating that Venetian dynamism into a Northern European visual language. Consider the angel, almost a theatrical flourish, amidst profound sorrow. Does that tension speak to you, between the heavenly and the earthly? Editor: Absolutely! That angel almost feels…out of place. A bit too performative given the gravity of the scene. Curator: Precisely! And yet, doesn't that speak to the baroque sensibility? The drama, the spectacle, the emotional excess. It’s a meditation on grief, yes, but also on faith, on the visual power of belief in the face of overwhelming loss. That little vignette of figures in the background almost feels like they are emerging from the darkness towards hope... a little splash of light! Editor: That makes me see the figures at the forefront of the engraving differently; that density is supposed to feel overwhelming because they're trapped in that initial moment of despair. Curator: Exactly! The engraving isn't just illustrating a biblical scene; it's creating a space for reflection, for feeling, even centuries later. Editor: Wow, I’ll definitely look at other baroque engravings differently from now on. Curator: Me too! It makes you consider who is represented, who is producing the image, and how they bring you in closer to experience an intense emotion.