Visser met visnet 1769 - 1838

Curator: First impressions? This engraving, "Visser met visnet," strikes me as terribly ordinary. It’s just…a man, a net, a city faintly sketched in the background. What do you see? Editor: Ordinary? No, I think it's beautifully understated. There’s a quiet dignity to it, the way the lines capture the set of his shoulders against the weight he's carrying. And the city behind him, it isn't just a backdrop; it's interwoven with the rhythm of his life. Curator: That rhythm being a life of economic desperation, more likely. This piece by Carlo Lasinio, created sometime between 1769 and 1838, captures a moment in time but also, for me, a moment in a deeply class-structured society. Editor: Do you see it as exploitative, this capture? I wonder, wasn't this also an opportunity to represent, ennoble even, a figure so often rendered invisible by the prevailing visual culture? Look at the line work on that net! Such delicate, purposeful creation of space… Curator: That’s an interesting observation, definitely. One might wonder if, by depicting this man and this daily activity, Lasinio hoped to question the hierarchies that render such people invisible, even disposable. Editor: Yes, but it could also simply be born from close observation, curiosity… that delight we can sometimes feel to watch a person do work, even. Look at his feet. He walks with them exposed to all that's happening there on the paving. Do you see strength or exploitation in his toes? Curator: His bare feet...well, given the era and the probable lack of choice in the matter, they symbolize vulnerability more than strength. I acknowledge that artists in that era were as much political commentators, though; and sometimes more subtle in their messages. What about his gaze—is that avoidance? Deliberate missing of your eyes, listener? Editor: What a great observation! Is he a person trying to survive through an image imposed upon him, by Lasinio, or is it possible for him to escape that frame somehow? I'd like to believe there is that potential here for a man caught with all that sky above. Curator: Maybe the key is knowing that sometimes a man with a net is just that, and perhaps looking at what isn't there on the picture is important. The river is present from inference only. Editor: Nicely observed. Something to go away and consider and all from just one small man.