Portret van Christoffel Middaghten 1698 - 1747

Editor: This is a print, an engraving actually, titled "Portret van Christoffel Middaghten" by Andries van Buysen Sr., created sometime between 1698 and 1747. It's at the Rijksmuseum. I'm struck by the detail, and how the artist uses shadow to create drama, with the naval battle in the background. What do you see in this piece, especially regarding the historical and cultural context of printmaking? Curator: Looking at it materially, engraving was a key method of image dissemination. Prints like this weren't just art; they were news, propaganda, and social commentary circulated relatively cheaply. How was this made and by whom? Look closely. A craftsman painstakingly etched lines onto a metal plate, each telling a story, serving power. Who consumed this and what impact do you imagine it had? Editor: I imagine it was for a wider audience than, say, an oil painting would have been, potentially solidifying Middaghten’s image as a naval hero, like a proto-photograph. Was the production of this engraving typical for the time? Curator: It aligns with the Baroque aesthetic – dramatic, intended to inspire awe, to reinforce a political narrative. But let's dig deeper: who were the patrons, the buyers of such images? Often it's not about aesthetics at all, but more about what an artwork signifies materially about societal structures, class aspirations. Were there competing prints offering alternative views, perhaps critical ones? The context shapes our interpretation and how art gets consumed. Editor: That's a helpful framework. I never really thought about printmaking as an active participation in shaping public perception in a way. Curator: Precisely! Seeing art this way – understanding production, labor, dissemination – shifts us away from idealized notions of individual genius and artistic creation towards the bigger, messy reality.