Portret van Karel VI, Duits keizer 1717

Editor: Here we have Jan Baptist Jongelinx's 1717 engraving, "Portret van Karel VI, Duits keizer" - or Portrait of Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor. It's quite a formal portrait. All those emblems of power seem very calculated. How do you interpret this work, considering the social and political context of its creation? Curator: I see this engraving as deeply embedded in the performance of power and legitimacy. Charles VI's reign was marked by anxieties about succession and maintaining the Habsburg legacy. What stories does this image conceal, what narratives are intentionally amplified? Editor: What do you mean by concealed stories? Curator: Well, consider the prominent display of imperial symbols like the eagle and the Habsburg coat of arms. Aren't they actively constructing a narrative of strength and divine right, perhaps in response to challenges to his rule, especially since he had no male heir? It's all carefully staged to project authority. Do you think it fully succeeds? Editor: I suppose that the inclusion of those specific symbols could be a reaction against rising voices that opposed him. Now I understand what you meant about the concealed stories; it suggests there was resistance to the divine power, a narrative carefully cropped out. Curator: Exactly. Jongelinx wasn't just creating a likeness; he was participating in a complex negotiation of power and identity. Editor: So looking at art like this helps us uncover social and historical power dynamics that are embedded in visual culture? Curator: Precisely. Art can act as a lens, through which we may analyse societal structures, and this portrait gives us ample opportunities to start conversations about gender, power, and identity in 18th-century Europe. Editor: Thanks. I'll never look at a royal portrait the same way again. Curator: Hopefully it inspires you to look at all artworks a bit differently.