Berglandschap met watervallen en een kloof 1852 - 1855

Editor: Alexandre Calame's "Mountain Landscape with Waterfalls and a Gorge," made between 1852 and 1855, presents a dramatic vista rendered in etching. There's an almost overwhelming sense of grandeur and power here, like nature is indifferent to everything below. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Indifference is an interesting starting point. I think Calame's playing with the Romantic ideal of the Sublime - the feeling of awe mixed with terror. The tiny figures dwarfed by the immense mountain, the churning clouds...it's all designed to make us feel small, yes, perhaps even insignificant in the face of such overwhelming nature. But is it indifferent, or powerful, full of a potent life-force? What do *you* think? Editor: I suppose powerful, but in a way that doesn't care about us. Is that what Romanticism was about, exploring those feelings? Curator: Precisely! And Calame was a master of it. Notice how he uses the dramatic lighting and the sharp contrast between light and shadow to heighten the sense of drama. This wasn’t just about representing a landscape, but about evoking a particular emotional response. Editor: So, the feeling is the point, even more than the mountain itself. It almost feels like a stage. Curator: Exactly. It's a constructed emotional space. He wants you to feel something profound. But do you think it still speaks to us today, this particular flavor of awe? Editor: I think so. That feeling of being small in something larger than ourselves still resonates, whether it’s nature, the universe, or…well, anything bigger than our daily lives. Curator: I couldn’t agree more! It's why these Romantic landscapes endure; they touch upon a universal human experience. This piece offers a small glimpse of something eternal.