Brakende monnik 1724

Editor: This etching from 1724, titled "Brakende monnik" by Jacob Gole, portrays a solitary monk, and it seems rather somber. How would you interpret this work? Curator: From a materialist perspective, the very process of etching is key. Consider the labor involved, the careful application of acid to the metal plate, the printing process itself. This wasn't just about creating a picture, but a reproducible commodity for a growing market. The use of line, characteristic of the era, flattens form, but also makes reproduction easier. Editor: So, it's not just about what the image depicts, but how it was made and for whom? Curator: Exactly. We must think about consumption and access. Etchings were relatively affordable. Who would have purchased this image of a “brakende monnik”, or rather “vomiting monk”? Perhaps it was intended as satire, playing on anxieties about the excesses of religious life, designed for consumption by a rising middle class. Editor: That makes me reconsider the monk's bowed posture. I initially thought it was sadness, but now it suggests overindulgence, maybe a critique of monastic orders at the time. Curator: Precisely! And consider Gole himself – a printmaker, craftsman, businessman. He was part of a larger system of production and distribution. It is important not to valorize the artistic genius, but examine this print's materiality and role within the economic and social currents of 18th-century Holland. Editor: I see your point about shifting the focus to production. Thanks, it helps to understand beyond just the immediate image. Curator: It's about connecting the artwork to broader societal forces and systems. Considering the tangible conditions behind art objects brings new depths to our understanding.