Eine junge Frau und ein Jüngling, den Kopf in ihren Schoß gelegt, auf einem Hügel lagernd 

Editor: Here we have Victor Müller’s drawing, "Eine junge Frau und ein Jüngling, den Kopf in ihren Schoß gelegt, auf einem Hügel lagernd," rendered in pencil on paper. It feels so intimate, yet distant at the same time because of the sketchiness of the image. How do you see the figures relating to one another, and what about that horizon line? Curator: It's tempting to romanticize Müller’s depiction, especially given its medium and form as a drawing. I'd focus first on the interplay of line and form, where Müller uses delicate pencil strokes to define the contours of the figures. Observe how the curvilinear lines that comprise their bodies contrast with the more horizontal marks that define the hill and suggest a distant skyline. This contrast is, structurally, what creates the tension between the figures and their landscape setting. How do you think this contributes to the ‘intimacy’ you’re describing? Editor: I suppose the use of horizontal lines, and very few of them, almost flattens the background. This pushes the figures to the forefront. Are the relative angles or placements of the human subjects meaningful in terms of the relationship being displayed here? Curator: The overlapping of forms and the inclined positioning of the reclining figure also enhances that foregrounding. The fact that their physical bodies almost converge or blend calls our attention to their combined mass, shape, and volume within the picture plane. The gentle slope where they rest adds depth and dynamism, directing our eyes back to the background details you had mentioned earlier. Editor: Looking closely, I appreciate the complexity of his simple linear technique. Thanks for this focused observation. Curator: Indeed, through close inspection we have a more concrete understanding of this piece than an unstudied glance can give us.