Vaandeldrager 1658 - 1677

Editor: Right now, we’re looking at Wallerant Vaillant’s "Vaandeldrager," created sometime between 1658 and 1677. It's an etching, which gives it a soft, almost smoky feel. I am drawn to how contemplative he looks. It is also unclear for whom he is a standard-bearer and what, if anything, he is trying to convince us to fight for. What do you see when you look at this print? Curator: It feels like a whisper from another era, doesn't it? Vaillant's portrait captures this air of youthful melancholy, common in the Golden Age, yes, but perhaps more profoundly personal. As a standard bearer, he seems burdened not just by a flag but by a thought… a dream perhaps. The etching almost traps that moment between boy and manhood, duty and doubt, like pressing a flower in a very old book. It raises an interesting question: is he presenting a cause, or is he lost in his own, the kind we all carry, don’t we? Editor: That’s beautifully put. It’s as if the soft tones are veiling something he wants to tell us but can’t find the words. Curator: Exactly! Maybe he represents the potential in all of us – the battles we *might* fight. Tell me, what do you make of the slightly upward gaze, and the hand, clutching that flagstaff so very tight? Is it courage, apprehension, something else entirely? Editor: Maybe a bit of all three? I think you’re right; there’s an ambivalence there that feels very modern, almost relatable. Curator: Yes. That slight wavering - in line, in posture, in intent - that gives this "Vaandeldrager," I feel, a timeless quality. The quiet uncertainty becomes part of the human condition, doesn’t it? Editor: It does indeed. I’ll definitely think about that the next time I question my own path forward. Curator: Wonderful! Art should hold a mirror up to those things.