Adam en Eva na de zondeval 1626

Francesco Villamena created this engraving, "Adam and Eve after the Fall," around the turn of the 17th century. The stark contrast of light and shadow immediately captures our attention, casting a somber mood over the scene. Linear precision defines the figures, while the landscape is marked with dense, cross-hatched lines which describe the texture and materiality of the figures within their environment. The composition is structured around two distinct halves. On the left, Eve is surrounded by her children and a dog. The right side of the engraving presents Adam, isolated, burdened with the toil of labor. This division underscores the shift from paradisiacal harmony to a world of struggle, reflecting a structural opposition. Villamena's stark style, combined with the narrative elements, conveys the postlapsarian themes of guilt, labor, and the loss of innocence. The formal arrangement emphasizes the disruption of an original wholeness. This engraving serves as an important signifier of humanity’s transition into a world defined by binary oppositions and moral struggle.