Trekpaarden bij de Seine in Parijs c. 1898 - 1899

Editor: So, this etching, "Trekpaarden bij de Seine in Parijs," or "Horses Pulling Barges on the Seine in Paris," was created by Pieter Dupont around 1898 or 1899. I'm immediately struck by the contrast; there’s something both powerful and a bit melancholic in the depiction of these working horses. What catches your eye? Curator: The weight. Not just the physical weight of the barges these animals are pulling, but the symbolic weight of their labor. Notice how Dupont uses the symbol of the horse, traditionally linked to freedom and power, and presents it within the confines of industrial Paris. Do you see how the impressionistic style almost blurs the line between animal and machine? Editor: I do. The lack of crisp detail almost makes them part of the landscape, cogs in the wheel of the city. But what does that say about our cultural memory? Curator: It speaks volumes! These images act as potent reminders of a transition. Horses were crucial to the pre-industrial world, becoming increasingly replaced during that time. Dupont captures that moment of overlap and displacement. Look at their downcast heads; is that just the posture of labor, or something more? The weight of their symbolic loss? Editor: I see it now; the horse carries all of our history, of human labor and the natural world, even as it fades from the modern landscape. Curator: Precisely! And that tension, between the past and the burgeoning modern world, is held right there in that image. Etchings like these were affordable, circulated widely. Imagine how it spoke to its contemporary audience and how it continues to speak to us now. Editor: It's like Dupont wasn't just depicting horses, but a whole changing world. This has completely shifted my understanding – thank you! Curator: My pleasure! It is about recognising those symbols in plain sight; visual relics in the everyday.