Pijproker, zittend aan een tafel c. 1650 - 1700

This image, titled Pijproker, zittend aan een tafel, depicts a pipe smoker seated at a table and was created by an anonymous artist. It's executed as a print, meaning that it was made by transferring an image from one surface to another, likely using a metal plate and acid to etch the design. Consider the process of printmaking: it allows for multiples, which democratizes images and ideas. This is especially relevant when we think about the subject matter. The work shows a scene of leisure, with the man smoking a pipe and another figure peering over his shoulder. The pipe itself is a product of craft, made from materials like wood or clay, and often embellished with decorative details. Smoking, like drinking, was a social activity and a source of both pleasure and commerce. The print medium, with its capacity for reproduction, invites us to think about the circulation of images and the representation of everyday life. It collapses any hierarchy between the fine arts and the culture of ordinary things.