Drie soldaten after 1656

Curator: What a study in contrasts this image offers. Salvator Rosa's etching, “Drie soldaten,” made after 1656, features three figures rendered in a whirlwind of line. Editor: It does have a chaotic energy, doesn't it? A restless quality in the very making of it. The lines are so alive, like the figures might just jump off the page. Almost a humorous quality too, if not dark humor. Curator: Interesting, because from my perspective, this is all about the materiality of the etching process. Look closely at the cross-hatching, the way he builds tone through labor-intensive methods. The distribution and manipulation of the ink gives depth and even conveys, perhaps, a social commentary on military life. Editor: Yes, I see that the lines certainly emphasize the... the grit of it all. Makes me think of tattered flags and dented armor, all those objects with labor ingrained in their surfaces, reflecting back on the people who make and use them. The image conveys a definite impression of weariness and that life in wartime is probably less than glamorous for everyone, noble or ignoble. Curator: Rosa, while known for painting, dedicated a substantial amount of his practice to printmaking, allowing for broader circulation of his ideas, or perhaps a deeper look at class and status... it is telling of Rosa's commitment to making art accessible beyond the elite circles of his day. This was at the forefront of production itself, of the economics of it all. Editor: Absolutely! And accessible now too, right here at the Rijksmuseum. What I love is the way the figures seem so caught up in their own dramas, a real intimacy. They almost share their pain through the labor embedded in them, these old materials made anew... Curator: Yes, exactly. So it's about the physical object reflecting labor of both war and artistic production. Fascinating how material processes are so deeply tied to expression and wider society. Editor: Absolutely. Now I am seeing what lies behind that rough ink; both art and warfare—different sorts of struggle bound by thread, material by material.