Dieren 1843

Curator: This engaging print, titled "Dieren," was created in 1843 by Jan Schuitemaker. It’s an engraving on paper, a real peek into the natural world as seen through a 19th-century lens. Editor: My initial impression is one of whimsical charm. It has a storybook feel, with its tiny scenes of animals in miniature landscapes, almost like sketches from someone's private sketchbook. Curator: Exactly. Schuitemaker was publishing this magazine specifically "voor de Jeugd", or for the youth, a sort of visual compendium of natural history designed to be educational, so there's a commercial angle at work. I notice the distinct 'old engraving' style lends it a kind of narrative, storyboard-like structure. The labor required for each plate must have been immense. Editor: Right, there’s something incredibly sweet and a bit funny in the rendering— the animals are drawn in these cute poses but the tiny size almost undermines the serious educational intent, but adds quirkiness. Look at that little squirrel! Curator: Absolutely! It reveals so much about the way information was disseminated and consumed in the mid-19th century. The paper itself, now aged, becomes a material testament to that history of production. But I do find something in this aesthetic slightly troubling... Editor: Troubling how? It strikes me as delightful. But now that you say that...it's also very removed from direct observation of these creatures. More of a visual compendium divorced from real animals perhaps? Curator: The animals, yes, but also it brings home the very nature of visual print in those days: images made by hand. Before photography, print was labor, industry and circulation. The charming illustrations speak, for me, not just to youth but to the broader forces shaping European popular understanding. Editor: You're right to remind us to consider this magazine and the social-economic conditions under which this work came to be! Well, I think, despite all the factors that are worth understanding "about it", Schuitemaker's piece retains a good natured, inviting aura of education, which gives the animal kingdom an endearing quality. Curator: Ultimately, the work bridges the artistic intent and educational necessity of the age! Thank you.