Portret van Christoph Martin Wieland 1756 - 1819

Gottlob August Liebe created this portrait of Christoph Martin Wieland using etching. The delicate lines of the etching create a formal and austere image, dominated by geometric shapes. The oval frame, adorned with a twisted rope, immediately draws the eye, encapsulating the subject in a controlled space. Below, a rectangular plaque displays Wieland's name, further emphasizing the rigid structure. The lines that define the shape and details of the etching are also used to create areas of shadow and texture. Considered through the lens of structuralism, the artwork presents a series of binary oppositions: the organic versus the geometric, the individual versus the frame, suggesting a tension between subject and structure. Notice how the formal elements work together, creating a portrait that not only represents an individual, but engages with broader ideas about representation itself, inviting us to decode the underlying systems that inform our understanding of identity and image-making.