Schaatsenrijders c. 1745 - 1785

Curator: Today we’re looking at “Scaetsenrijders,” or “Skaters,” an engraving made by Anthonij van der Haer sometime between 1745 and 1785. Editor: The scene feels so lively despite the monochromatic palette, doesn't it? There’s a beautiful sense of depth and activity all created from a web of fine lines. You can practically feel the cold and hear the scrape of blades on ice. Curator: Exactly. Genre scenes like this gained popularity during the Dutch Golden Age. There was this burgeoning middle class eager to see themselves and their activities depicted, rather than just religious or historical subjects. Notice how the church spire anchors the village to the background, reminding viewers of the social order present in the town itself? Editor: True, but the focus here is on labor. Look closely: someone's hauling barrels, presumably of goods or maybe beer, across the ice. The rendering suggests that these forms are quite heavy; you can feel the weight and strain etched into the pulling figure's body, it points to the physicality of work in everyday life and the need to cross such risky environments as a frozen body of water in pursuit of livelihood. Curator: That's an interesting point, the contrast between leisure and necessity. Public skating emerged as a complex social practice. It involved everything from vendors making profit to working-class individuals making long journeys along frozen routes, just like in this piece. The activity helped sustain the area’s commerce. Editor: It certainly highlights the crucial function of craft in depicting that commercial activity. Consider the engraver’s process, the way they have translated texture and movement through these lines. Think about the labor of cutting the plate, and then the printing process, making this accessible imagery repeatable, in essence building its value by sharing that material. Curator: So, what’s your takeaway, thinking about all this? Editor: I’m seeing how even a seemingly simple scene like this holds layers of social and economic reality. How labor and leisure mingle on this ice and how making the image has a function. Curator: For me, it’s a glimpse into a time of expanding social possibilities and emerging cultural values, a moment captured through the lens of everyday life.