Saint Mary Magdalen c. 17th century

Curator: Jacques Callot, born in Nancy, France, around 1592, made this tiny etching, Saint Mary Magdalen. It's only about 3 by 2 inches! Editor: It feels cavernous despite its miniature scale. Mary Magdalen is kneeling, almost swallowed by the landscape. It's quite somber. Curator: She's in the wilderness, renouncing her former life. Callot suggests her spiritual awakening through the landscape itself. Look how she gazes upward towards the divine apparition. Editor: The etching technique really heightens the contrast, doesn't it? It emphasizes the starkness of her transformation, her break from society. Is this a feminist statement? Curator: Maybe, maybe not... What I feel is her total absorption, her focus is entirely on what's above, like nothing else matters. Editor: A reclamation narrative for the ages. Callot certainly captured a potent image here. Curator: Absolutely, it resonates deeply with the viewer.