Mozes en het brandende braambos 1804

Damiano Pernati made this print of Moses and the Burning Bush sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century. The image depicts the foundational encounter between God and Moses. It is an event in which the divine speaks to humanity, commanding Moses to lead the Israelites out of slavery. The image is made through etching, a popular printmaking technique at the time. Note how Pernati uses line and shadow to create drama and to focus our attention on Moses's reaction. The radiant light emanating from the bush contrasts with Moses's hunched posture and shadowed face. The image may reflect the religious and social upheavals of its own time. To understand this print fully, we can research the artistic conventions of religious imagery in 18th-century Italy, the social role of printmaking, and the political uses of biblical stories.