Of Shitposts and Little Ice Ages

Was there such a thing as ‘shitposting’ in the 17th century? Is Rembrandt really always a safe investment? What florid dramas lie behind the scenes in Rachel Ruysch’s still life paintings, and has Aelbert Jacobsz Cuyp finally gone to the dogs? The Tyrolean State Museums are taking a closer look at their small but nonetheless impressive collection of Dutch paintings, posing topical contemporary questions in relation to the works of Rembrandt and Co. Selected paintings dating from the 16th to the 18th century are presented and staged anew through essay-style texts that are not meant to be taken too seriously. The resulting questions relating to the role of artists, the value of art, or the significance of climate change hundreds of years ago are an invitation to see Dutch painting with fresh eyes and to view art history as an entertaining dialogue between the past and the present.