View of the Campagna 1669

Claude Lorrain created this ink and wash drawing, "View of the Campagna," during a period when the Italian countryside was idealized as a pastoral landscape. Lorrain, living in 17th-century Rome, was part of a generation of artists that shaped perceptions of nature. At this time, landscape painting was more than just scenery. It was deeply connected with notions of property, leisure, and the picturesque. Lorrain's landscapes present a world where nature appears tamed and ordered, aligning with the desires of wealthy patrons who sought to project an image of control and harmony. The solitary figures placed within the scene, often seen as shepherds, suggest a romanticized view of rural life, far removed from the realities of agricultural labor and poverty. "View of the Campagna" invites us to consider how landscapes are not just what we see, but how they are constructed and consumed. What does it mean to find beauty in a scene that implicitly erases the struggles of those who lived and worked on the land?