Romaanse ruïne met een koe aan het water 1826

Karl Blechen made this small print, ‘Roman Ruin with a Cow at the Water,’ probably in the 1830s, using etching. Blechen was a German artist, who studied and taught at the Berlin Academy. This print is characteristic of his landscapes. Here, the classical past is presented as an object of contemplation. Blechen is interested in the way that institutions, like the Academy, mediate our view of the past. Made during the rise of industrial capitalism, his landscapes remind us of an earlier era. Blechen emphasizes a contrast between classical architecture and unspoiled nature. But he is not simply nostalgic. The cow is a sign of the rural economy that was rapidly vanishing from Europe during this period. To understand more fully Blechen's interest in the past, we can consult the records of the Berlin Academy and the writings of contemporary art critics. The meaning of his art is something that shifts according to the social and institutional context in which it is encountered.