Tempel van Hercules Invictus, Rome 1781 - 1822

Editor: Here we have Hermanus Fock's etching "Temple van Hercules Invictus, Rome," created sometime between 1781 and 1822. It’s quite striking how somber it feels, almost like a memory fading away. What's your read on this cityscape? Curator: Oh, I love that you called it a fading memory! Because aren't all images of the past, in a sense, echoes? This Neoclassical scene, rendered through the precise lines of etching, invites us to consider Rome not just as a city, but as a palimpsest. See how Fock captures the grandeur of the Temple, but also includes the everyday—figures walking, a donkey pulling a cart. What do those ordinary details suggest to you? Editor: Maybe that life goes on, even amongst ruins? That the classical ideal exists alongside the mundane? Curator: Precisely! It's that tension, that layering of past and present, which gives this print its depth. Fock isn't just documenting a building; he's capturing a feeling, an atmosphere where the weight of history is palpable, yet life continues to unfold. You know, Rome is just magical that way, I have such nostalgia, it is not unusual to find pizza by the Colosseum! I wonder what it was like back then. Does it feel more 'alive' or more 'studied' to you? Editor: Definitely more studied, there is such deliberate and clean style and clarity! This makes me look at etchings in a completely different light. Thank you for sharing this perspective. Curator: My pleasure! Art is just looking with different angles. I think I shall use this quote for my opening for an article now!