Maria omhelst Elisabeth 1639 - 1656

Henri Mauperché created this print of "Maria omhelst Elisabeth" – or "Mary Embraces Elizabeth" – using etching. It is a fine example of the kind of imagery circulating in the Netherlands in the 17th Century. The artist reproduces a scene from the Gospel of Luke, but sets it within a formal colonnade, reminiscent of classical architecture. The two women embrace in front of this architectural display, which seems at once grand and rather flimsy. What statement might Mauperché be making about the relationship between religious subjects and institutions? Engravings like this were widely available at the time, and so a dialogue developed, one that allowed artists to comment on the social structures of the time. To understand the context better, we might consider the relationship between Dutch artists and the church at this moment in history. As historians, our interpretation of art is always contingent on the social and institutional context in which it was created.