Christ Giving Custody of His Herds to St. Peter, from The Passion of Christ, plate 30 1664

Curator: Look at this, an engraving by Grégoire Huret, "Christ Giving Custody of His Herds to St. Peter," from 1664, part of a series called "The Passion of Christ." It's housed at the Met. Editor: Whoa, okay. Immediately, I'm struck by this feeling of weighty responsibility—like the air is thick with it. And that detail! The light is pretty heavy-handed, no? Like someone cranked up the contrast slider to max. Curator: That strong contrast is characteristic of the Baroque style, drawing your eye directly to the figures and amplifying the drama of the moment. You know, the giving of the keys, as it were. It marks Peter as the first pope. Editor: Keys, yes, literally handing over power... and the shepherding bit. It's giving me flashbacks to discussions of power structures, especially within religious institutions. Makes me wonder who actually benefits from this hierarchical handover. Like, who is in the foreground, and who’s getting overshadowed in this holy huddle? Curator: Well, in its own way the series attempted to spread religious messaging. It's interesting how Huret uses line and form to convey not just a narrative moment, but an entire theological framework. There is an element of theater involved in those figures, those trees looming over the protagonists in the foreground... Editor: Theatrics indeed, with that group looking on. Like, are they witnesses, accomplices, cheerleaders? Everyone's got a role to play in this scene, in the drama. That boat to the left is looking kinda worse for wear, maybe alluding to how transient all material belongings are when weighed up against promises of the afterlife. And let's think about it: in his earthly ministry, Christ chose people who knew all about what happens on the sea. Curator: Yes, the presence of the water makes me think about rebirth, reflection. And even with all those gazes bearing down on St. Peter from the rest of the characters on scene, you still get the idea of a one-on-one moment: “On you, I’ll build my church”. I like that about it. Editor: Absolutely. The way art can encapsulate layers of meaning—the personal and the political, the historical and the timeless—it really is quite something, isn't it? This baroque fervor, I guess, served its purpose.