The Ram, Chapelain of the Lion, Gives the Benediction to Renard before His Depature for Rome from Hendrick van Alcmar's Renard The Fox 1650 - 1675

Editor: So, this is Allart van Everdingen's etching, "The Ram, Chapelain of the Lion, Gives the Benediction to Renard before His Departure for Rome from Hendrick van Alcmar's Renard The Fox," created sometime between 1650 and 1675. It feels almost dreamlike to me, a sort of organized chaos. All these animals gathered in a forest glade… It makes me wonder, what’s your read on this piece? Curator: Ah, yes, Everdingen. This is delightful! Don't you think it seems like a stage play unfolding? The animals are essentially players, enacting a scene rife with satire. That central figure, Renard the Fox, is receiving a blessing from the ram. Note how carefully Everdingen depicts each animal’s posture – a lion, a dog, rabbits, sheep. They are imbued with a rather delicious slyness! Editor: Slyness? How so? Curator: Consider Renard’s journey to Rome. What kind of pilgrimage would *Renard the Fox* embark upon? It is like the artist gently prodding the viewer. Who are these figures? What roles do they usually play? How do these roles invert or inform their setting in Everdingen's world? It is almost allegorical. You find that playful sense in much of the Dutch Baroque period. Editor: I hadn't really thought about the "why" of Renard's pilgrimage! That gives the scene a totally different feel. Almost subversive. The seemingly innocuous landscape in the background now feels loaded too. Curator: Exactly! It is that gentle tension between what’s depicted and what it signifies that makes it so appealing, don't you agree? It is quite a feat for what looks, on the surface, to be an illustration. The world is upside down here, or perhaps just seen from an unexpected angle, making room for laughter and, perhaps, a little fear. Editor: I'm definitely looking at this with new eyes. It’s amazing how much depth there is beneath what seems like a simple animal scene! Thanks for that! Curator: My pleasure! Sometimes art just needs a little…translation!