Muizenvanger 1620 - 1660

Adriaen Matham created this print called "Muizenvanger", or "Mouse Catcher," sometime between 1610 and 1660. The print depicts an itinerant woman, surrounded by onlookers, selling her services as a vermin exterminator. While seemingly a simple street scene, the print offers a fascinating glimpse into the social fabric of the 17th century. Note the woman's attire and tools: her oversized glasses, the cages, and the bag full of rats. She’s an outcast, an outsider who ekes out a living on the margins of society, and yet she's central to the community's well-being. Also, consider the reactions of the surrounding people – curiosity, amusement, perhaps even a bit of disdain. Matham invites us to reflect on our own prejudices and assumptions about those who perform labor that is deemed undesirable. What does it mean to see value in labor when it is not always valued by society? In this regard, Matham’s print urges us to reconsider who belongs and who is excluded.