Flußlandschaft, links hohe Felsen 

Franz Kobell rendered this ink and wash drawing of a river landscape with high rocks sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century. Kobell came from a family of artists in Mannheim, Germany, a city known for its artistic patronage and intellectual life during that time. In this idyllic scene, we see figures dotted throughout the landscape: some resting by the stream in the foreground and others walking along the high rocks to the left. The monochromatic palette and the softened edges of the forms give the image a dreamlike quality, evoking the sublime. While landscape art has often been seen as separate from social issues, it’s worth considering how even these seemingly neutral scenes reflect the social and cultural values of their time. The presence of people in this landscape, for example, suggests a harmonious relationship between humanity and nature, a popular theme during the Enlightenment. This piece allows us to reflect on how art, even in its most serene forms, engages with our perceptions of ourselves and the world around us.