How one entered the church (Folgt wie man zur Kirchen gangen), from a series depicting the wedding of Wolfgang Wilhelm, Duke of Pfalz-Neuberg, Pfalzgraf, and Magdalena, Duchess of Bavaria, in Munich, 1613 (Plate 4) 1614

Curator: Looking at this, I’m immediately struck by how painstakingly Wilhelm Peter Zimmermann rendered such a bustling cityscape in this engraving and etching titled, "How one entered the church". Editor: A teeming dance of details, isn’t it? An ant colony arranged for our aesthetic judgment. All these tiny figures in dark lines making their way across the composition, under the gaze of buildings and towards what, exactly? Curator: The church! It captures a scene from the wedding of Wolfgang Wilhelm and Magdalena of Bavaria in 1613. The piece dates to 1614 and it is one from a series that depicted the wedding celebration. Editor: One could spend hours tracing those lines, mapping out the flow of production. Imagine Zimmermann, hunched over his plate, repeating the gestures, etching and engraving away— the sheer labor involved. These prints, they weren’t mere images but objects, commodities circulating within a social sphere that prized dynastic pomp. Curator: And not just that labor! I think there's also the labour of trying to hold a memory; of documenting something spectacular in a lasting form. Perhaps that's why the details almost threaten to spill over—it's like he wants us to experience the abundance and the splendor of the wedding celebration. What do you see as you immerse yourself into the artwork, ignoring its labor? Editor: Abundance for some, labour for many. These parades required staging. How much were the flag bearers compensated? How much were the stablemen? What was the origin of materials for these architectural triumphs or even for the garments worn by those on horseback? Every celebration rests on so much other stuff and labor. Curator: Maybe you are right! Though I feel its charm stems precisely from that precarious balance: spectacle meeting mundanity, material excess existing alongside the very physical realities that gave it form. A world where artistry meets economy... Editor: A constant push and pull between intention and the means to realize it, always impacting on its time! Thanks for sharing this Zimmermann’s work. Curator: Absolutely. The material reality checks help one to zoom out, allowing us to consider things from many angles, making one see deeper meanings.