Den fortabte søn som svinehyrde 1618 - 1676

Curator: This etching by Jean Baptiste Bonnecroy, created sometime between 1618 and 1676, is entitled "The Prodigal Son as a Swineherd." Editor: Immediately, I’m drawn to how utterly mundane it seems. We’ve got pigs, ramshackle buildings… a far cry from the usual depictions of biblical dramas. There's a bleakness here. Curator: Exactly. Bonnecroy's taken this grand parable and grounded it, quite literally, in the dirt. The symbolism, of course, is heavy – the swine representing the son's degradation, the simple setting underscoring his destitution. But look closer, there is more here than meets the eye! Editor: Those stark contrasts are fascinating. The detailed, almost obsessive rendering of the leaves in contrast with the relative simplicity of the buildings gives everything a strange hyper-reality. It mirrors the son's internal state perhaps, clinging to the remnants of beauty in a desperate situation. What I feel is sadness in all corners of the work. Curator: It's that very tension between the beautiful rendering of the landscape and the grimy reality of the subject that gives it power, don't you think? The Baroque style, in most instances, would imply this flamboyance and intensity, but he chooses subtlety and understatement. It invites a quiet contemplation rather than dramatic displays of emotions. The landscape overwhelms the figures, speaking about alienation, about the long road back to oneself. Editor: A powerful reminder that even in the depths of despair, there's a persistent natural order, an ever-present potential for renewal. I mean look, in the very bottom there are tiny illegible glyphs of some form. Does that speak to an idea of permanence? An intention? Or possibly, nothing more than a scratch. It just stands out to me in the piece. Curator: Oh, what a beautiful thought. It certainly reminds us that everyone experiences feelings of longing for their origin from time to time! Editor: Perhaps there is nothing sadder than the truth laid bare through pen and ink.