Ali-Baba of de 40 roovers 1894 - 1959

Curator: At first glance, this looks like something pulled straight from the funny pages! A bit old fashioned but very playful and warm in tone. Editor: Indeed! We are looking at a colorful graphic art print titled "Ali-Baba of de 40 roovers," which roughly translates to "Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves." Preserved here at the Rijksmuseum, this print was created sometime between 1894 and 1959. It depicts scenes from the famous folk tale in a sequential, comic-strip style. Curator: Ah, the tale as old as time… or close enough! So it is the well-known folk tale retold in little illustrated scenes. I adore the expressive postures. Each little vignette really captures a whole narrative in one gesture. Look at Ali Baba perched up in the tree, or later, the thieves discovering him... Editor: The artwork's simple design and chronological sequencing render it more accessible to younger viewers. While seemingly just an adventure story, this visual narrative encodes deeper colonial-era themes of power, deception, and wealth acquisition within what we'd now call Orientalist stereotypes. Curator: That makes total sense. Even with the... what did you call it... Orientalist garb. There’s also that pervasive underlying thrill that permeates so much art involving forbidden treasure! Maybe the stereotypes are not accidental – they are intrinsic to how Europeans conceived of "the Orient". Editor: Exactly. This work provides interesting insights into Dutch colonial imagination and popular perceptions of non-Western cultures. The humor here risks re-inscribing certain racist imaginaries and biases. Curator: Yes, but let’s also notice how compelling the layout is. Despite all those heavy themes, the artist made effective compositional choices, turning each scene into a cohesive miniature. I could lose hours inventing little scripts for all these characters... Editor: And maybe understanding and confronting these antiquated racist undertones becomes, for today’s viewer, an act of reclaiming and reinterpreting our cultural histories. It is necessary work! Curator: Absolutely. It is also kind of fun work, truth be told!