Recumbent Pig c. 1650 - 1675

Curator: Here we have Adriaen Verdoel's "Recumbent Pig," a pencil drawing on paper created sometime between 1650 and 1675. Editor: Well, my first thought is just how vulnerable it looks, lying there like that. There’s almost a somber beauty to it. Curator: It’s interesting you say vulnerable. Drawings like these were often studies. Pigs, of course, were important livestock, a source of food and wealth in 17th-century Dutch society. Verdoel likely made this sketch as part of a larger exploration of the natural world. Editor: Absolutely. I see this everyday mundanity of the subject combined with such artistic reverence...it elevates the humble pig. The soft shading makes you feel the weight of it, the curves and rolls—the very being of this animal. Curator: Precisely. Though on first glance the pig seems a simple subject, Verdoel's skill prompts us to consider Dutch society's economic drivers. It brings the realities of animal husbandry and agrarian life into focus. Editor: Though I am interested to consider this artwork within a social context as a cultural object, I am more interested in thinking about the subject of the piece and how its shape dominates the small composition so effectively. You feel the subject is ready to sink even deeper into the canvas, perhaps the depiction represents something psychological and less historical? Curator: It's not a contradiction. The psychology of a pig lying down isn't immune to historical context! The point is understanding our modern viewership. I look at this picture, and I find the picture almost confrontational given how far removed we have become as a society from animal raising. But how would it have appeared to people at that time? That is something that captivates my imagination. Editor: You are right... the power of suggestion. It gives new meaning to how I interpret a tired, unassuming pig. Curator: Indeed. Art is about building layers, isn’t it? This piece prompts reflections on the history of agriculture but can be interpreted within a personal contemporary framework too. Editor: And with a fresh appreciation for a well-rested pig, I might add.