hier ziet ge een stoet van helden, uitgelezen, / Volgt hunne dapperheid, (...) wilt nooit geen vyand vreezen 1781 - 1828

Editor: This is "hier ziet ge een stoet van helden, uitgelezen, / Volgt hunne dapperheid, (...) wilt nooit geen vyand vreezen" a print made sometime between 1781 and 1828 by Jan Hendriksen. The layout reminds me a little bit of a storyboard or a page out of a comic book, all these uniformed men on horseback… I am curious, what do you see in this piece? Curator: It makes me think of my old collection of tin soldiers, doesn't it you think? A carefully posed regiment all lined up ready to march off a shelf somewhere. This is about valor, yes, but also about order, about social stratification carefully rendered. Did you notice how the artist arranged them in a grid, but the visual variety of each character in the rows almost cancels that out? Editor: Hmm, true. It's like he’s trying to both organize and celebrate individuality all at once. I think each of the soldiers on horseback has something unique, some visual distinction, even if the positions in the army are rigidly stacked. Curator: It could also point to some emerging social tensions during the late 18th and early 19th century, an artist simultaneously celebrating order but making a record of potential upheaval. Like it could topple anytime if a horse rears! I feel it! Editor: Right! Now that you mention the social element it seems really compelling! Maybe this rigid format wasn't just about showing ranks, but a deeper dive into the military ethos of the time? I guess that it may mean many things and this is so fun to notice that. Curator: Exactly! Art can often contain these quiet reflections and stir emotions.