Portret van Wolfgang Jacob Nützel 1727

Editor: Here we have a piece called “Portret van Wolfgang Jacob Nützel,” an engraving made around 1727. The detail is just incredible! He’s quite a character, isn’t he? Very imposing. What catches your eye about this portrait? Curator: The gaze. It feels like he’s appraising you, doesn’t it? It has all the swagger of Baroque history painting but through the lens of a print. See how much information it contains: a classical column indicating timelessness, a theatrical drape suggesting opulence. The hat is plopped beside his hand, giving off “just stepped away” vibes! What I find truly amazing, though, is how the artist uses hatching and cross-hatching to suggest all the textures. It invites endless reveries about his world. How does that strike you? Editor: That’s so true. The textures, like in his furry robe, almost don't seem possible given it's just lines. It is interesting to look at prints of this period because, well, everyone was doing portraits... Why do you think this particular portrait made it to the Rijksmuseum? Curator: Perhaps the man, Nützel himself! That inscription makes clear that this chap was something of a 'big noise’ and prints are essentially multiples, they were made to travel. Did that clarity help reveal this work for you in a new light? Editor: Absolutely, especially imagining the journey this portrait might have taken. Curator: Mine too! The hidden history whispering from the surface never fails to thrill me.