Profane liefde 1600

This is Wierix’s ‘Profane Love’, a small engraving made around the turn of the 17th century, now in the Rijksmuseum. The composition presents a tightly packed allegorical scene, brimming with life and detail. A nude couple is flanked by Cupid and a wine barrel set against a backdrop of foliage. Below, a table laden with food completes this image of earthly pleasures. Wierix uses the graphic language of engraving to create a rich surface texture. The density of lines, the way they swell and diminish, produce a captivating play of light and shadow that animates the scene. This treatment is not merely decorative. It functions semiotically, the textures suggesting the weight of flesh, the sheen of satin, and the roughness of bark. The artist presents a world teeming with vitality, yet also structured and composed. Here, the eye is drawn to the formal harmony, a visual expression, perhaps, of love's balance. The arrangement is more than just an aesthetic choice, it is a philosophical statement about the power and beauty of mutual affection.