Daniel fodrer dragen 1565

Editor: This is "Daniel fodrer dragen," or "Daniel Feeding the Dragon," an engraving by Philips Galle from 1565, housed here at the SMK. It's such a busy scene! My initial reaction is just how crammed with figures it is – the dragon, of course, but also the king and Daniel and a whole crowd of onlookers. What's your take on this menagerie, so to speak? Curator: Ah, yes, a menagerie indeed! To me, it’s like looking into a beautifully chaotic dream. Galle has crammed so much detail in, hasn't he? And notice the fallen columns? The way they seem to be mid-collapse adds a wonderfully unsettling feeling of, dare I say, divine demolition! It speaks of upheaval and transformation, a visual quake accompanying Daniel's act of… well, dragon taming! How do you read Daniel's calm amidst the surrounding chaos? Editor: He does seem remarkably calm. Almost…detached? Is it about power, would you say? Proving that his God is stronger than this dragon-deity? Curator: Exactly! But there's a deeper whisper here, wouldn’t you agree? This isn’t just muscle flexing by some higher power. Consider Daniel’s gaze, not on the dragon, but slightly past it, as though contemplating something far grander. What could that signify? Editor: Hmm, maybe he sees the dragon, not as a threat, but as a symptom of something rotten in the kingdom, something that needs a cure rather than just vanquishing. Curator: Precisely! A cure, and maybe, dare I suggest, even compassion for the misunderstood monster. See how Galle presents the dragon -- a kind of reptilian refugee -- seeking sustenance from an unlikely saviour. Makes you ponder, doesn't it? Editor: Definitely! I came expecting a history painting about religious dominance. I'm leaving thinking about empathy, ecology, and maybe even the possibility of finding the sacred in the seemingly monstrous. Curator: Galle had that knack for making the old new again, and for getting us to look at our own dragons just a little differently!