Dood van koning Eduard IV van Engeland, 1483 1816 - 1886

Friedrich Randel created this work, "Death of King Edward IV of England, 1483," using an engraving technique. The composition immediately draws our attention to the stark contrast between light and shadow. The figures are posed in a theatrical manner, yet the greyscale medium flattens the image, creating a sense of distance. Randel's formal choices invite us to consider how power is represented through the interplay of visibility and concealment. The scene depicts a moment of royal tragedy, but it is the structured arrangement of figures that conveys meaning. The artist uses the visual language of theatre to frame Edward's death, as if history itself were staged. This self-conscious artifice challenges any notion of a singular, stable interpretation. The engraving doesn't merely depict an event; it functions as a structured commentary on historical representation itself. The artist seems to destabilize any claims to historical truth, emphasizing the constructed nature of our understanding through his strategic use of form.