Landscape 17th-18th century

Editor: This is Jacobus Coelemans' "Landscape," from the 17th or 18th century. It's a very detailed print showing a bustling harbor scene. What stands out to me is the amount of labor depicted. What do you see in this print? Curator: I see a meticulously crafted image that obscures its own production. Consider the engraver's labor: the tools, the workshop, and the social context of printmaking itself. This image was made for consumption, for a market eager to consume landscape imagery. How does the print's medium and distribution affect its message? Editor: It definitely gives me a new perspective to consider the economic side. Curator: And the contrast of skilled craft with the workers shown unloading goods. Editor: Yes! It’s interesting to consider how art and labor are linked.