De binnenplaats van het fort Jaffnapatnam op Ceylon c. 1710

Curator: So, what strikes you first about this work? Editor: It’s almost ethereal, isn’t it? The soft, muted colors give it a dreamy quality. The scale seems grand, yet the details are so delicate. There's a palpable stillness, a kind of quiet observation of a distant world. Curator: It’s interesting you say that. This watercolour, made around 1710, is titled “De binnenplaats van het fort Jaffnapatnam op Ceylon” or "The courtyard of the Jaffnapatnam fortress in Ceylon". It's by Cornelis Steiger. It offers a glimpse into a very specific time and place, namely Dutch colonial Ceylon, modern day Sri Lanka. Editor: Colonial Ceylon...that adds a layer of complexity, doesn't it? Those muted colours, the vast expanse of green… It almost feels idealized, maybe even sanitized, as if trying to portray a peaceful assimilation instead of an occupation. I’m struck by how different it looks to images I know of Dutch Golden Age landscapes. Curator: Exactly! What we’re seeing here is the gaze of the colonizer. Steiger, though a Dutch artist, is working within the established genre of Dutch Golden Age landscape painting. Here, however, the themes have shifted with a more exotic theme to highlight colonial life. What emerges is what scholars often classify as a form of orientalism; a western depiction of the orient meant to showcase the grandeur of colonial power. Editor: You’ve totally recontextualized this work for me. I was initially drawn to the serenity of it all, but your explanation forces one to reflect critically. That stillness I sensed now seems to reflect a deliberate power dynamic. The clouds now feel like they loom threateningly overhead and add to a complex mood in this watercolor. Curator: Absolutely. And it reminds us that art isn't made in a vacuum. Even these seemingly straightforward cityscapes can be powerful ideological statements, reflecting and reinforcing specific historical narratives. Editor: Well, I know I’ll look at watercolors a bit differently from now on. Curator: Precisely, now it makes one wonder, what exactly is not being shown in this tranquil cityscape.