Comedians, editorial cartoons, and memes harness the power of satire, parody, and hyperbole to provoke laughter, indignation—even action. These forms of expression are usually traced to eighteenth- century artists, such as William Hogarth, but they are grounded in the unprecedented freedom of artistic expression in the seventeenth-century Dutch Republic. This exhibition explores the complex visual strategies early modern Dutch printmakers used to memorialize historical events, lionize and demonize domestic and international leaders, and form consensus for collective action.
The Cummer Museum is the third and final venue for the exhibition, which was previously on display at the University Galleries of the University of San Diego and the Krannert Art Museum.
The exhibition is curated by Maureen Warren, Curator of European & American Art, Krannert Art Museum, University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign.