In the reading Introduction: Global Art History and the Netherlands by Thijs Weststeijn, the author details the history between global art and the Netherlands, with an emphasis on art from countries the Dutch VOC was involved in. Particularly, the reading focuses on the cross-cultural exchanges between Dutch art and art from areas of Dutch VOC activity, like China, Indonesia, and Japan. For example, the author notes versions of Christian works made for a Chinese audience, like Christ crowned with thorns, 1640, which portray Jesus and the surrounding people as Chinese and situated in Chinese surroudings. In addition, the reading highlights the popularity of Asian art in the Netherlands at the time, from porcelain which was often included in European still-life works, to Asian lacquer, which was prized for its resilience and polished surface.
In the lecture A Material History of the Dutch Colonial Imaginary by Dr. Claudia Swan, she highlights the role slavery played in Dutch art and how slaves were a common sight in Dutch art even though they were usually found in the periphery of works and often without any formal attribution. Swan highlights a variety of paintings where slaves were often helping Dutch people who were often well adorned while the slaves themselves were given less artistic care. These works contrast with earlier works shown by Rembrandt picturing free African people in the Netherlands made in the tail-end of his life, which illustrate that even during a time where Dutch colonialism and its supporting racism was prevalent throughout the world, works focusing on free black people in the Netherlands were still made.