Bakket terræn med grusgrav og træer 1850

J.P. Møller made this drawing called "Bakket terræn med grusgrav og træer" in 1850. It's a landscape showing figures amidst a gravel pit and trees. The image gives us a glimpse into the relationship between the Danish people and their environment at a time of increasing industrialization. While nature is still seen as a source of beauty, it is also presented as a resource to be extracted. The gravel pit suggests the beginning of landscape transformation and a shift towards a more utilitarian view of nature. The figures in the landscape, both the workers and the hunter, represent different aspects of this changing relationship. To fully understand this artwork, we can turn to sources such as historical archives, economic data, and studies of Danish art and environmental history. These resources can help us to understand the social and institutional contexts in which Møller was working and to appreciate how he was using art to comment on the changing world around him.