Palingverkoopster met klant c. 1820

Joannes Bemme made this print of an eel seller and her customer with etching and engraving. It shows two women in an open landscape, presumably in the Netherlands, where Bemme lived and worked in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The image provides a window into the everyday life and commerce of the time. We see the seller, with her wide-brimmed hat and baskets full of live eels, interacting with a customer. The print captures a moment of economic exchange. It's a genre scene, but also a record of social roles and class distinctions. What does it mean to see working-class women represented in art? How does this image participate in a larger history of representing labor? To understand this print more fully, we can explore the visual culture of the Netherlands during this period. This would allow us to examine the role of women in the economy and the representation of common people in art. By placing this image within its social and institutional context, we gain a richer understanding of its meaning and significance.