Staande soldaat bij een zittende appelverkoopster 1800 - 1841

Curator: Here we have "Standing Soldier by a Seated Apple Seller" from between 1800 and 1841, attributed to Joannes Bemme. It's a print made with watercolor, currently residing here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Well, that's a charming little scene! There's something rather tense and poignant about the interaction. It’s more complex than I initially thought it would be. Curator: Complex how so? I see a soldier eyeing some apples. Editor: Oh, the symbols are wonderfully tangled. Apples have always had so much baggage – temptation, knowledge, life and death…And paired with a soldier? A figure associated with conflict, authority, potential violence… I find myself wondering about the nature of their transaction, the implied power dynamic, and who really holds the leverage. Curator: It’s definitely layered, and perhaps typical for genre painting from that era to offer commentary on everyday life. I mean, the apple seller— Editor: She's not just any seller. Note her garb. Her positioning lower than the soldier—but then she *offers* him the apple. Is it charity? A dare? Or does it signal more profound power and knowing that resides within what society might otherwise overlook? The contrast makes one wonder. Curator: Power plays… you really think? To me, she simply looks…weary. Life is a battle of attrition for some; her battle looks a lot like simply trying to make a sale. But the soldier *is* stiff. Editor: Perhaps it’s not just the soldier that’s stiff—society is! But regardless, the charm comes from a real push-pull. Curator: Indeed. And isn't it lovely how those very limited color washes enhance the sense of temporality here? You can feel the era's constraints but still appreciate the artist’s touch and this small, vital story. Editor: Precisely! It leaves one with this strangely warm and unsettled feeling all at once, pondering how history's echoes whisper even in the quietest of everyday encounters. It feels eternal to some degree, an almost Platonic encounter if I may suggest.