Gammel by 1751 - 1828

Johan Bülow created this print of "Gammel by" with etching. The landscape is constructed with a stark contrast between the black ink and the white of the paper. Note how this monochromatic palette simplifies the forms, emphasizing line and shape. The composition leads our eye from the foreground with figures and a boat toward the architectural ruins and the distant horizon. The strategic use of line—dense hatching to define shadow and sparser lines to suggest light—gives volume to the ruins while flattening the overall picture plane. This tension between depth and flatness engages with the discourse of pictorial space, playing with our perception. Consider, too, how the architectural ruins might signify broader themes of decay and the passage of time. The structure of the print invites us to contemplate the relationship between form and content, and the semiotic potential inherent in the ruins themselves.