De bui c. 1925

Editor: This is "De bui," or "The Shower," a woodcut print made around 1925 by Johannes Frederik Engelbert ten Klooster. It shows three figures struggling in a boat during a storm. The thick, dark lines give it a really dramatic feel. What stands out to you? Curator: The raw materiality of the woodcut itself speaks volumes. The stark contrast, the deliberate gouges creating light and shadow – it forces us to consider the physical labor involved in its production. Think about the tools, the artist’s hand, the very tree it came from. What kind of labor do you imagine produced this, and for what purpose? Editor: It looks really difficult to carve! I guess someone probably spent a lot of time on it, so it feels counter to the urgency of the scene, which depicts the struggle in the shower in this simple medium. So how did he manage to produce something this refined and also rugged? Curator: Exactly. This isn’t some pristine, mass-produced image. The visible grain, the slight imperfections—these are testaments to the individual artistry and craft. And it’s crucial to place this in its social context. Consider Expressionism, with its roots in social commentary and concern for the human condition. Were such scenes something people commonly encountered? Editor: Perhaps! What can that history of labour or the purpose of depicting a “common man” escaping the storm mean for the purpose of its viewers and owners? Curator: Precisely! Thinking about labor processes and material contexts of both production and consumption—who made it and why, as well as for whom?—allows for new avenues to see value in artwork. Editor: I never thought of it that way before, but it really highlights how connected the physical act of creating art is to the message it conveys. Curator: It also questions the role of the ‘artist-genius.’ This wasn't solely about some isolated artist having a creative outburst. It’s about skill, material availability, the social realities they sought to represent, and that means more than just pretty paintings.