Portret van Filips II 1755 - 1765

Editor: We're looking at "Portret van Filips II," an engraving from somewhere between 1755 and 1765, by Sébastien Pinssio. The level of detail is striking, particularly given it's an engraving. What draws your eye in this piece? Curator: Well, darling, for me, it's the theatrical stillness. Look at him, perched just so in that ornate oval! He seems captured mid-thought, perhaps pondering weighty matters of state... or perhaps just what he'll have for supper! Do you see how the engraver has given so much volume and personality, just with strokes of a burin? Editor: The hat, definitely. It's quite the statement piece. And the way the light catches the folds... Curator: Oh, the hat is essential! A symbol of power, but also… a touch of the absurd, perhaps? Think about what he represented. Think of his choices. Doesn’t that hat suddenly have a rather heavy weight to it? I also wonder… who was Pinssio trying to *woo* with this portrait? Royalty, for favour? Or was it intended for the people to gaze upon with some measure of "awe?" What do you reckon? Editor: Hmm, good question. It does feel slightly...idealized. Like a carefully constructed image. Perhaps to cement a certain image for posterity. Curator: Exactly! Think of the stories etched, no pun intended, onto that tiny copper plate. Each line speaks, doesn’t it? From Pinssio’s hand, into our hungry gaze. I suppose there are just too many stories one might take from all of this to easily consider just *one.* Editor: Absolutely. I see so much more to it now than just a historical portrait. Curator: Isn't it marvelous when a simple image can make you question everything?