Zwei Ziegen, einander angreifend 

Editor: This ink drawing, "Zwei Ziegen, einander angreifend," depicts two goats clashing, with their bodies suspended mid-air. It reminds me of depictions of devils in folklore, as the image somehow seems mischievous to me, maybe the composition and the blank background lend to this mood. How do you read this work? Curator: Interesting. I see echoes of ancient bestiaries. Goats, especially when fighting, often embody untamed instinct. Notice how the artist captures their aggression with quick, decisive strokes; do these lines suggest a primal struggle that speaks to humanity's own inner conflicts? Consider the Renaissance emblem books: a battling goat can symbolize stubbornness, or even unchecked desire. Editor: So, their fight could symbolize human nature itself? I was only thinking about animal behavior, but it seems much bigger than that. Curator: Precisely. The blank background you noted isn't just empty space, but amplifies the isolation of the conflict, almost suggesting that their animosity exists in a void. Now, the artist clearly was German. Do you see elements connecting these fighting goats to established traditions, perhaps the woodcuts that satirized society using animals? Editor: That connection to satire wasn’t obvious to me. So the imagery taps into existing social commentary traditions, lending meaning beyond just animal portrayal. Curator: Exactly! Visual symbols acquire layers of meaning through repetition and cultural association. The power of images lies in their capacity to carry this emotional and historical weight across time, provoking a memory. Editor: I never considered this simple drawing had all of this embedded history within it. Now, seeing these connections definitely shapes my understanding. Curator: It's a continuous dialogue, always changing over time.