Grenadiers van de garde / Grenadiers de la garde / Voltigeurs 1800 - 1833

Curator: This print, titled "Grenadiers van de garde / Grenadiers de la garde / Voltigeurs," by Philippus Jacobus Brepols, likely created between 1800 and 1833, depicts rows of soldiers, and I find its flat composition quite striking. The varied colour schemes are fascinating, but I am unsure as to what they might signify. What jumps out at you about this work? Editor: Well, it's hard not to notice the lithographic and etched lines; the method by which it's reproduced seems just as vital to its effect as the men being portrayed. What can you tell me about that material process and its role? Curator: The etching and lithographic printmaking process is precisely where we find cultural clues. The creation of multiple editions, due to those printing techniques, speaks to broader access and consumption. Notice the precision and detail achieved through these processes; it enabled a wider audience to consume imagery related to military prowess and national identity. This aligns with the rise of nationalism in Europe at the time. Editor: That's a great point. The printmaking makes the imagery available to many and spreads a particular nationalistic message. Were these prints intended to celebrate the individuals represented or to inspire specific political actions? Curator: Excellent question. Looking through a materialist lens, one might suggest it is not the celebration of individual heroism that matters most here. Instead, it emphasizes the manufacturing of consent, the mass production of patriotic imagery as a tool of social and political control. The work encourages us to examine the labor behind the image, and whose interests that labour serves. Editor: I never considered prints in this way, it changes everything! Curator: It certainly expands the view. Looking beyond aesthetics encourages engagement with social structures and modes of production. Editor: Thank you, that helps me consider the art from a much broader social context. Curator: My pleasure; art invites us to explore and challenge these very assumptions!