Blinden leiden de blinden 1866 - 1904

Emile Jean Sulpis made this print, "Blinden leiden de blinden", sometime between 1856 and 1943. In it, a line of blind men stumble forward, each holding onto the shoulder of the one in front. Two have already fallen in a ditch, and the others are sure to follow. Sulpis invokes a visual code well established in European painting. He takes the image from a painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, "The Blind Leading the Blind," painted in 1568. This was a time of religious conflict, and Bruegel's painting alluded to the social and spiritual crisis of the time. The image suggests the foolishness of those who follow incompetent leaders, as well as the general frailty of human reason. In Sulpis's print, it may be useful to ask whether he saw similar kinds of crisis in his own time. Historical sources may give us insights into his intentions and the painting's reception. Art history reminds us that art is always situated in specific contexts, but retains the potential for new meanings across time.