Hilly Landscape with River and Trees, Two Men on a Cliff 1746

Editor: This is Alexander Cozens' "Hilly Landscape with River and Trees, Two Men on a Cliff." The etching has such delicate lines, and yet it feels monumental. What do you see in this piece? Curator: I see a landscape imbued with the power dynamics of observation. The two men on the cliff, literally elevated, survey the land below. This echoes colonial gazes, doesn't it? Who is allowed to look, and who is subjected to that gaze? Editor: That's a perspective I hadn't considered. It makes me think about how landscape art has historically been used to justify land ownership. Curator: Precisely! And how that connects to notions of power, gender, and even the exploitation of natural resources. It is an intersectional story. Editor: That gives me a lot to think about. Thanks! Curator: My pleasure. Art invites dialogue, and that is how we learn.