Adoration of the shepherds 

Editor: Here we have Claes Moeyaert’s ink drawing, "Adoration of the Shepherds," housed here at the Städel Museum. It strikes me as a surprisingly intimate portrayal of a biblical scene; the soft washes lend it a dreamlike quality. What draws your eye when you look at this piece? Curator: The raw emotion, definitely. There's a quiet reverence in the hunched shoulders of the shepherds, isn’t there? You can almost smell the earth and livestock mingling with frankincense. It feels...real. Almost like peeking into a private moment rather than witnessing a grand spectacle, don't you think? It reminds me of candlelight flickering in a stable, casting dancing shadows... I get utterly lost in the nuances. Editor: Absolutely, the composition draws you right in! It feels like a captured scene, a slice of life. The way Moeyaert uses ink washes is also fascinating. Curator: The ink, yes, it's like whispered secrets across the paper! Notice how he contrasts areas of deep shadow with bright highlights, creating a sense of depth and drama, almost as if the light itself is a character in the story. It is an echo of the baroque tendency of mixing daily life with sacred history to make the extraordinary approachable. What I also appreciate is that the animals get to partake in it all! I wonder what they thought of it. What did the lamb make of the gathering, do you think? Editor: I love that interpretation! I hadn’t thought about the light in that way. And imagining what the animals might be thinking, what a unique touch! I came in seeing a quiet scene, but now it feels so much richer with your insights. Curator: Well, perhaps Moeyaert himself hoped we’d all bring a bit of ourselves, our curiosity and even our wildest thoughts, into the scene too. Isn’t that the joy of art, after all? We don't just look; we become.