Interieur met geestelijken c. 1663 - 1695

Christiaan Hagen produced this print, "Interior with Clergy," in the Netherlands, sometime in the 17th century. The image is divided into three parts. In the middle, a cleric kneels before a woman and child; to the left, a pope and a protestant cleric. To the right, figures study religious texts. This print seems to offer us a commentary on the religious institutions of the time, in the wake of the Reformation. Clerics from different denominations occupy the same space. What might Hagen be suggesting through this juxtaposition? Is he pointing out that each, in their own way, pays homage to the same mother and child? Or is he making a wry comment on their differences? To understand better what Hagen is suggesting, we can study the religious history of the Netherlands, the biographies of leading religious figures, and histories of the church itself. Art like this print reminds us that art history is always contingent on its social and institutional context.