Zeilend vissersschip op zee 1805

Editor: So, here we have Cornelis Thim’s "Sailing Fishing Boat at Sea," created in 1805 using watercolor. It’s quite striking in its depiction of turbulent water and seems to hint at the hard labor of fishermen. What stands out to you? Curator: What’s immediately interesting to me is the visible labor involved. The rough handling of the watercolors mimics, perhaps unintentionally, the very real labor enacted by those aboard the ship. Consider also the watercolor medium itself – it's cheap to make and easy to carry: the art world industrial complex at play! Editor: I never thought about it that way. So you’re suggesting that even the choice of medium points to the conditions of production and consumption during that era? Curator: Precisely. Watercolor, unlike oil, allows for a faster production. How many of these could Thim have produced and sold in the time it took to produce an oil painting, let alone the fishing boat, the net? Who was consuming them, and to what purpose? Editor: So, it's not just about the picturesque scene but about the entire system that allows its creation and circulation. Does that also impact our understanding of Romanticism, given it’s a Romantic-era work? Curator: Absolutely. Romanticism often idealized nature and the sublime, but here, through its very material production, we glimpse a far more grounded reality: the labor and material conditions that underpin even our aesthetic appreciation. Where are those fish being shipped to? Who is profiting? What's the market for nautical themed art? Editor: That’s fascinating. I'm beginning to see how deeply ingrained material realities are within art, even seemingly simple watercolors. Curator: Indeed, and understanding those material relationships can significantly enrich our engagement with art. Now, how might we look at other period artworks through this lens?