Bava c. 18th century

Editor: This is Carl Gottlieb Guttenberg's "Bava," an etching. The landscape is striking, but the figures seem so small against it. What do you see in this piece? Curator: The scene is indeed picturesque, but it's also carefully constructed. Think about the rise of tourism in the 18th century. Etchings like this catered to a market eager for views of the exotic, sanitized for bourgeois consumption. Editor: Sanitized? Curator: Yes. Guttenberg crops out evidence of poverty, for example. The focus shifts to the sublime, manageable landscape, effectively turning lived experience into spectacle. Editor: So, it's less about reality and more about selling an idea? Curator: Precisely. It makes you wonder what's left out to create this appealing image for viewers back home. Editor: That adds another layer to the artwork. I didn't consider the marketing aspect.