Slachtscene 1806

Editor: Here we have Frédéric Théodore Faber’s "Slachtscene," created in 1806. It's an etching, and I find it quite compelling how Faber captures a slice of everyday life, almost like a candid snapshot. What stands out to you about it? Curator: It’s fascinating to consider this piece as a document of labor. Etchings and engravings, as relatively affordable means of image production, played a crucial role in circulating these depictions of everyday work. How does Faber portray the actual work being done, the processing of this animal? Editor: You're right, it's not romanticized. The scene looks quite practical. There are numerous figures actively involved. They’re grouped around what appears to be the carcass of an animal. Curator: Notice the way Faber uses line. Look at the quality of the line used to render the architecture versus the figures themselves, consider the labor involved in the material production of the image, the etching itself. What does this suggest about hierarchies of labor? Is he interested in craft versus something higher? Editor: It almost makes the structure feel less solid, or reliable somehow. You're saying his technique elevates the laborers compared to their surroundings? It almost feels that the environment is a witness. Curator: Perhaps “elevates” isn't quite right. Perhaps it suggests that it foregrounds the people and what they’re actively doing as the main subject, a specific way of viewing the world and translating it into reproducible images. It definitely compels us to think about this as more than just a pretty image, and to think about the means of its production as it relates to the means of food production. Editor: That's given me a totally different way to approach prints. Thanks. Curator: Absolutely. Thinking about the relationship between the materiality of art and its subject matter is a constant process.