Een ieder zijn ambacht 1894 - 1959

This colorful print by Monogrammist G.J. is a series of panels, almost like a comic strip—the making of it must have been a patient, step-by-step process! I feel like I can see him thinking through this story, one scene at a time. What was he thinking when he returned again and again to the theme of the troubadour? Was he thinking about the meaning of work in society? Or the value of pleasure? The lines are thin and precise, each telling a different part of the story. Look at the round vignette in the lower right, where the woodcutter is felling a tree. The artist frames him in a circular composition almost like a sun. It makes me wonder how the art of storytelling connects to our own work, and how each era builds upon the dreams and visions of those who came before. Each story is part of a never-ending chain!