Tactus / Het Gevoel

About this artwork

verzamelaarsmerk, verso, gestempeld: Lugt 138

Art Historical Context

**Tactus / Hetvoel** (*Touch / The Sense of Touch an engraving by Dutch artist Cornelis van Kittensteyn, dates to the vibrant Dutch Golden Age between 1620 and 1652. Van Kittensteyn, active in Leiden, specialized in intricate prints that captured allegorical themes, reflecting the era's fascination with the human senses. This work likely belongs to a series personifying *Het Gevoel* (touch), a popular motif in 17th-century Northern European art symbolizing sensory experience and moral reflection amid the prosperity of the Dutch Republic. Crafted as an engraving—measuring a intimate 230 × 253 mm—this piece showcases the precision of intaglio printing, where a metal plate is incised with fine lines, inked, and pressed onto paper. Engravings like this were revolutionary for their reproducibility, allowing collectors across Europe to own detailed artworks affordably. The technique's sharp contrasts and textures would vividly evoke the tactile theme, inviting viewers to ponder touch's intimacy. On the verso, a stamped collector's mark (Lugt 138) hints at its esteemed provenance, linking it to historic connoisseurs. As a window into Baroque-era sensibilities, *Tactus* reminds us how art bridged the sensory and the symbolic in Holland's cultural heyday.