Vogelnest in boom wordt bedreigd door slang en bliksemschicht 1776 - 1847

Curator: It's immediately striking, this print titled "Vogelnest in boom wordt bedreigd door slang en bliksemschicht" - "Bird's Nest in Tree Threatened by Snake and Lightning Bolt." Made between 1776 and 1847, this work by Johannes Christiaan Bendorp is housed here at the Rijksmuseum. It certainly has an intense atmosphere. Editor: Yes, the mood is definitely foreboding! I notice how Bendorp uses incredibly fine engraving to create textures; you can almost feel the bark of the tree and the looming threat of the storm. Curator: Precisely! Considering the period in which this print was produced, it's hard to overlook the Romantic fascination with nature's power, with life and death struggles played out against dramatic backdrops. I wonder how this piece would resonate with contemporary concerns about environmental crisis. Is the lightning bolt climate change? Is the snake rampant capitalism strangling our ability to nurture? Editor: That’s compelling. Looking closely at the printmaking process itself adds another layer. Each line meticulously etched into the plate, inked, and pressed… It mirrors the fragility of the bird’s nest. The labor invested mirrors nature’s effort, both vulnerable to external forces. The availability of printmaking materials like copperplate influenced what art could even *be*. Curator: Absolutely, and if we look beyond purely visual concerns, the positioning of the nest also becomes crucial, literally 'caught' in the branches – symbolising dependence and lack of social mobility, vulnerability of certain populations during the rise of colonialism and capitalism at the time this artwork was conceived. Editor: And there's the landscape itself—a picturesque rural scene overshadowed by violence. It seems like the print suggests a critique of idyllic views and reminds the consumer of the hard materials and effort. How many people saw something beautiful like that? Curator: That reading makes sense. There’s an inescapable socio-political undertone too. We need to think about who had access to landscape art during that time period, what class of people Bendorp hoped to move with it. This work could then speak against those that take idyllic for granted, with many outside looking in. Editor: I'll definitely leave with an enhanced perception of landscapes and those ideas. I now see much more than a picturesque setting—a statement is there. Curator: Agreed, Johannes Christiaan Bendorp really pushed the limits. It gives pause to consider not only the beauty of the engraving itself, but to the labor of its construction, and how these factors combine to underscore his statement about how much we still endanger ourselves, our neighbors, and all of nature to survive in society.