Allegorical Subject: Nude Woman, Three Children and a Mousetrap (La Sourcière) 1600 - 1688

Curator: We’re looking at "Allegorical Subject: Nude Woman, Three Children and a Mousetrap (La Sourcière)" by Claude Mellan, likely completed sometime between 1600 and 1688. It’s an etching. Editor: It's intriguing. My initial impression is one of disquiet. The combination of nudity with those… domestic elements, like the mousetrap, feels jarring. Curator: That friction is key. We must read this through the lens of power and vulnerability in Baroque-era gender dynamics. Consider how the female nude was, and often still is, used to portray both innocence and temptation. The inclusion of the children speaks to that complex relationship between motherhood and sexualization. Editor: Absolutely. And then you have that mousetrap so prominently displayed. Mellan’s choice is a strong symbolic pointer to entrapment, whether societal or personal. The trap suggests deception. The children appear both vulnerable and mischievous, clinging to the woman as if seeking protection or offering a false comfort. It brings a disturbing awareness of hidden danger. Curator: Indeed. Look at the distinct racial identities Mellan depicts, especially unusual for this era. The nuances within the print highlight that questions around identity have always been central. I’m led to consider questions of agency, and in this image it seems decidedly ambiguous for all present. Editor: I also see the symbolism of fertility and abundance represented by the grapes. The figure holding them seems to mediate between innocence and the older, perhaps wearier, figures on the left. I think this image explores a tension between lived experience and projected fears around women. Curator: And in a way that resonates even today. Mellan gives us an entryway to probe intersectional experiences with gender, sexuality, and class. Editor: I agree. There are still multiple possible stories embedded in the print, like layers that ask us to reconsider. Curator: And the continued engagement, across centuries, speaks volumes about its ongoing relevancy to conversations about gender and representation. Editor: It’s a chilling piece that seems so innocent on the surface, while hiding those complex elements right in plain view.