“Fiep Westendorp at the Rijksmuseum is a triumph for illustration”
For a long time, illustration was not taken seriously as an art form. Unfairly so, says UvA professor Emilie Sitzia, who has written a book on the rise of modern illustration. Folia spoke to her about this at the Fiep Westendorp exhibition at the Rijksmuseum. “Fiep’s illustrations really bring home what needs to change in society.”
“What if you take a photo of me like this?” Emilia Sitzia, a lecturer at the University of Amsterdam (UvA), positions herself with her nose right up against a painting from the Fiep Westendorp exhibition at the Rijksmuseum. The French professor of illustration at the University of Amsterdam, in her black-and-white dress, perfectly mimics the pen-and-ink drawing by the Dutch illustrator, who pokes fun at the all-too-serious museum visitor.
It is that sharp, socially conscious perspective that Sitzia – who isn’t particularly fond on being portrayed herself – so values in the illustrations of Fiep Westendorp (1916–2004). Sitzia: “She has a keen eye for what needs to change in society and knows how to present that in a humorous way.”
Sitzia, too, uses a lot of humour when she gives the Folia editor a whirlwind tour of Westendorp’s 150 original drawings. It is precisely the originals that fill her with such enthusiasm as a researcher. “You can see her thought process in the originals,” says Sitzia. “You can see how she built up the drawing, where she changed a line, and here with the little pistils you can see how she experimented with their hairstyles using correction fluid.”
Victory
The fact that Fiep Westendorp’s illustrations are on display at the Rijksmuseum – the definitive authority on art in the Netherlands – is a recognition of illustration as an autonomous art form, argues Sitzia. Westendorp’s drawings have been exhibited in the Stedelijk Museum earlier. Once in 1956, alongside other illustrators who were explicitly kept separate from what was thought at the time to be the “real” art.
Sitzia sees a growing interest in illustration. “Over the last five to ten years, there has been an increase in the number of illustrators in the Netherlands. The Artez art academy in Arnhem is launching its first Master’s programme in illustration after the summer. And the Master’s elective in illustration at the UvA is also popular. The fact that the chair for it at the UvA – funded by the Fiep Westendorp Foundation and the Van Gogh Museum – is recently extended feels like a victory.”
There are several reasons why illustration has been sidelined for so long, Sitzia explains. For one thing, the form of illustrations – in books, newspapers, on mugs and even in 3D – can vary greatly, which makes a clear definition difficult. The fact that they are often commissioned and sometimes serve a practical purpose also made recognition difficult. “But even an illustrated poster adds meaning to the text and falls under the category of art. Although I do draw the line at the little man in the IKEA assembly manual, haha.”
Authenticity
Yet the coming of age of illustration is striking, particularly now that AI is threatening the profession from all sides. Sitzia agrees. “Illustrations are indeed under pressure from AI. Anyone can use AI to scrape images from the internet and produce something ‘new’. In science we call that fraud. But it is precisely because of AI that we are coming to appreciate the authenticity of illustrations and creators who take moral responsibility for their images.” We have a choice in this matter, says the professor. “My kid, for example, won’t go to a party if the flyer has been created by AI.”
An illustrator adds meaning, explains Sitzia. “In Jip & Janneke, Janneke is often crying in the story, but you don’t see that reflected in the illustrations. There are parents who, for feminist reasons, swap the names around when they read the book aloud. The illustrations make that possible.”
Illustration is a medium in its own right, that tells a separate story about developments in society, says Emilie. “If you look at Fiep Westendorp’s drawings, you’ll see that the children are always in charge. You never see the parents in the pictures in Jip & Janneke. Pluk van de Petteflet drives his own lorry and Floddertje calls the shots herself. This ties in with the concept of children’s autonomous development, an idea that emerged in the 1970s and 1980s and which is also reflected in children’s books. Pippi Longstocking, who lifts her own horse, is another good example of this.”
Even today, children’s books contain social messages, although these have changed. Sitzia: “Illustrations in children’s books increasingly deal with themes such as climate change and colonial history.” In addition to the Zilveren Griffels and Penselen awards, which are presented annually to the best-written and most beautifully illustrated children’s books, there is now also the Groene Griffel, awarded to children’s books that “spark a sense of wonder about nature and wildlife in children”.
Illustration as a research method
Research into illustration is still in its infancy. The first history of illustration was only published in 2019. The first history of illustration’s development into an independent art form, written by Sitzia, is due to be published shortly. “For that, I chose the year 1844 as the starting point, when the illustrator Grandville struck a deal with a publisher whereby he would create the illustrations first, and the writer would then simply have to write the story. That’s the moment when someone says: my medium is just as important as yours.”
If it were up to Sitzia, illustration could be used much more frequently as a research method, including in other disciplines. “That’s already happening, such as in the scientific illustration of the human body. But you can also use it for fieldwork in many other disciplines like sociology, human geography, museology, etc.. To focus your attention on a specific element and learn to observe more closely – you don’t need to be a good artist to do that.”
She herself had her students observe visitors at the Van Abbe Museum through illustration. “Through this, she discovered that children “light up” when they get a question right. Their faces actually light up. You can sketch that more quickly than describe it in words.” Alongside her appointment at the UvA, Sitzia also works part-time as a museologist at Maastricht University.
Meme culture
What also makes this era different for illustrations is that the younger generation has grown up with images to a far greater extent than, say, twenty years ago. “We live in a world where people are highly responsive to images. Students have grown up with meme culture. We communicate using emojis. As a result, the need to interpret, analyse and create images has also grown.”
Illustration also lends itself well to activist and political messages. Sitzia: “Take the watermelon of the pro-Palestine movement. Or the clenched fist of the Dolle Mina’s. These are symbols that have more impact than a written manifesto that nobody reads. Illustration and activism, incidentally, already share a long history, but in these polarised times, an illustration can actually serve as a bridge. A way to start a conversation with one another.”
