Gevel te Haarlem before 1881

This image shows a Haarlem facade, made anonymously with stone and brick masonry. Notice the stepped gable and the rhythm of alternating materials, all carefully squared and leveled. This construction evokes the building trades of the 16th and 17th centuries: the brickmakers, the stonecutters, the masons. These were skilled men, often organized into guilds that protected their economic interests and regulated standards of practice. We might also think of the less visible labor involved: digging clay, firing bricks, quarrying stone. Dutch cities like Haarlem were centers of commerce and industry at this time. Buildings like this one are monuments to that economic activity. In many ways, these structures were the backdrop to the rise of global capitalism. By considering the making of this facade, we recognize the profound importance of everyday materials, construction processes, and the hands that shaped them. This brings us closer to a richer, more nuanced understanding of art history, one that encompasses both high design and vernacular craft.