View and Path from Clagenfurt along the River in Karenten 1681

Curator: This delicate print is "View and Path from Clagenfurt along the River in Karenten" by Melchior Küsel, part of the Harvard Art Museums collection. It's a tiny thing, the plate measures about 11 x 12 cm. Editor: It’s immediately striking, isn't it? That crisp black ink against the aged paper, and the landscape feels both familiar and slightly…theatrical? Curator: Theatrical is a good word. Prints like this were often commissioned to promote a particular place or region, to encourage trade or tourism. Editor: So, it's a kind of early advertisement, romanticising the ruggedness of the landscape with those dramatic cliffs and the implied promise of a journey. Curator: Precisely! It's about shaping perception, creating a desirable image for potential visitors and investors. Editor: Amazing how a tiny image can carry so much political weight, isn’t it? Looking at it now, I see the artifice, but I still feel the pull of that romantic vision. Curator: Exactly, it's a reminder of how art shapes our ideas of place and belonging, even now. Editor: It makes you wonder what image we're curating today.