Slaget ved Mentana 1868 - 1869

Curator: I find myself strangely drawn in by the quiet chaos. It feels… almost meditative in its rendering of such violence. Editor: That's an interesting take. I immediately sense the intended grandeur—all that detailed activity, frozen mid-battle. We're looking at "The Battle of Mentana" by Joel Ballin, engraved sometime between 1868 and 1869. It’s currently held here at the SMK, Statens Museum for Kunst. What strikes you most about its composition? Curator: The grey scale, for one. It somehow dampens the visual noise, letting the narrative breathe in unexpected ways. It’s almost as if Ballin wanted to create a memory rather than a spectacle. Do you sense that distance too? Editor: Absolutely. Prints like these served a public function, disseminating information but also shaping historical memory. The battle itself was a symbolic moment in the Risorgimento, the Italian unification movement. Ballin's print, reproduced and circulated widely, cemented a particular, undoubtedly biased, perspective on the events. The figures, though rendered in miniature, are given distinct roles. Curator: That’s what captures me! Despite the limitations of the medium, he creates an odd sense of intimacy. Even with a removed viewpoint. Those fallen soldiers in the foreground... almost pull you onto the field with them. You feel the grit, the sorrow… Editor: And yet, their sacrifice is framed within this larger narrative of national triumph. Romanticism favoured this kind of treatment: portraying key historic moments as pivotal struggles for national sovereignty. Consider the title too – "Victoria!" is blazoned near the base. But those quiet dead belie that reading now. Curator: It’s a tricky balance, isn't it? Honouring history without glorifying violence. Ballin invites that crucial reflection for us here today. Editor: Indeed. And by examining it through the lens of its production, we come to appreciate not only Ballin's craft, but the larger societal forces that shaped both the battle and its remembrance. It has been very nice talking about this artwork. Curator: For me as well. Maybe memory can be healing?