Faam zittend bij portretten van heersers met lauwerkransen 1644 - 1692

Curator: Immediately, this engraving feels grand, almost performative in its declaration of power. Editor: It’s an interesting piece, known as "Faam zittend bij portretten van heersers met lauwerkransen," which translates to Fame seated near portraits of rulers with laurel wreaths. Peter Dannoot created it sometime between 1644 and 1692, a print capturing an allegorical scene. Look at how power is visualized! Curator: The cherub crowning the busts already suggests a strong hierarchy of power. And, the winged female figure wielding the trumpets seems almost self-aware, posed and very deliberately placed next to those framed portraits of other rulers. What is she telling us about visual rhetoric here? Editor: The engraving certainly emphasizes ideal leadership through very conventional, symbolic tropes. We have Fame personified, trumpeting the successes of rulers, represented through these classical busts and portraits adorned with laurel wreaths. Curator: Yes, but that idealized vision also masks the very real struggles and conflicts that would have shaped the reigns of those leaders. I’m wondering about who is absent. How do we address the power structures embedded within such an idealized depiction of leadership? Who did this leadership truly serve, and who did it marginalize or actively harm? Editor: Absolutely. Understanding who commissions and consumes such imagery is crucial. This print likely circulated amongst elite circles, reinforcing particular ideals of governance and legitimacy. The art market also influences the types of art created and consumed. Curator: Considering those circuits of power is critical. It compels us to ask, who benefits from propagating this narrative of unquestioned authority? It pushes me to want to resist the simplicity of that narrative. Editor: For me, analyzing the print allows us to trace how notions of leadership were constructed and disseminated during this historical period. It acts as a historical marker of the past and tells a clear story of societal values. Curator: True. Ultimately, it highlights the visual strategies employed to shape and reinforce particular narratives around power, legacies that linger in contemporary society.