Dikke monnik met de sleutels van hemel en aarde 1724

Curator: Jacob Gole’s engraving, from around 1724, is titled “Dikke monnik met de sleutels van hemel en aarde,” or, in English, "Fat Monk with the keys of Heaven and Earth." It resides here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Oh my! The instant vibe is… slightly unsettling, almost darkly humorous? I'm struck by the figure, weighed down – almost literally shackled – by those enormous keys! There's an almost absurd quality to the composition. Curator: Absolutely. The engraving's success is partly due to its clever material presentation. We can see the etched lines create tone and texture, essential to conveying a sense of the monk’s substantial weight, both physical and symbolic. Editor: Symbolism being? Those keys seem less about opening doors and more about representing burden of religious authority, and isn't that a scapular around his neck? He’s like a caricature of earthly and heavenly power, struggling under the expectations! The lines around his face… each wrinkle feels like a year of hard-won but compromised… wisdom. Curator: Well observed. Baroque prints like these often played with popular archetypes. Gole capitalizes on a rising interest in satirical portraits which allowed for public questioning of status, but more interestingly, increased engraving production. Editor: It feels deeply human, but not in a sentimental way. The cross-hatching of lines almost looks like… layers of earthly troubles mapped on skin! It's a masterclass in subtle rebellion conveyed through skillful manipulation of the material—the ink and plate. How radical for the time. Curator: Gole's use of line in this engraving really does prompt us to reflect upon the processes of image-making itself and to consider prints not merely as copies, but as primary sites of aesthetic innovation, shaped by economic, and even socio-political forces. Editor: Right! Thanks to Jacob Gole's craft we aren't just looking, we're considering, feeling the weight. A brilliant and very human piece of work.