Estate 1744

Johann Ludwig Aberli created this drawing called "Estate" in the 18th century. It's rendered in pen and brown ink with gray wash over graphite, and shows a grand house atop a steep bank, various bridges, and smaller buildings below. Aberli was a Swiss painter, best known for his topographical views and landscapes. Works like this, popular with tourists, helped establish conventions for picturesque views of Switzerland that persist to this day. The viewpoint is carefully chosen to convey a sense of established wealth in harmony with nature. Aberli's drawings catered to a growing market for idealized images of the Swiss landscape. These images became part of a broader phenomenon, where the concept of the 'picturesque' shaped both artistic production and tourist expectations. To fully understand Aberli's drawing, scholars would need to examine guidebooks, travel accounts, and the broader economic context of tourism in 18th-century Switzerland. By understanding this context, we can appreciate how Aberli's images both reflected and shaped perceptions of the Swiss landscape.