Mending the Nets 1894

Editor: Here we have Max Liebermann’s “Mending the Nets,” created in 1894. The medium is listed as drawing, print, etching and charcoal, so it seems to be a mixed media work. It evokes a quiet sense of labor. What strikes you about it? Curator: This work offers an intriguing look at the materiality of labor. The image isn’t just about depicting these women mending nets. The roughness of the charcoal, the lines of the etching – they speak to the texture of the work itself. The net, of course, is more than just a fishing tool. It represents their livelihood, and also the literal and metaphorical connections between these women. Editor: So you're saying the medium itself is part of the message? How so? Curator: Absolutely. Liebermann's choice of printmaking, with its inherent reproducibility, points towards the mass production of images, paralleling the repetitive labor of mending. He elevates what some might consider craft – mending nets – to the realm of high art. The rough, almost unfinished quality, breaks down traditional hierarchies between refined artistic skill and the gritty reality of manual labor. What's produced through these nets that impact the local economy and daily material reality? Editor: That's a fascinating point. It reframes how we see their work and the social context it exists within. I hadn't considered the social implications of choosing printmaking for such a scene. Curator: Precisely. Think about who would have access to such prints, and how they might have viewed these laborers. Were they seen as picturesque peasants or vital cogs in the economic machinery of their community? How would they consume them? Editor: I see your point. It makes you think about the cycle of labor, materials, and consumption that underlies the entire scene, extending far beyond the depicted moment. Curator: Exactly! We moved from a representational image into production, value and distribution. A world unfolds when focusing on materiality!