Heuvelachtig landschap in storm 1641 - 1695

Curator: Nicolas Perelle created this etching, "Hilly Landscape in Storm," sometime between 1641 and 1695. It's a classic Baroque scene. Editor: It really does evoke a feeling of drama! Those windswept trees, the ominous clouds... It’s quite theatrical. It pulls you right into that turbulent atmosphere. Curator: Perelle certainly knew how to use line to convey mood. The etching technique lends itself well to depicting these textured clouds. You can see he uses tightly packed, curved lines in the sky which almost feels claustrophobic. Editor: The landscape almost seems to swallow those tiny figures on the hilltop. Makes you wonder, who are they? Are they seeking shelter? Or perhaps they're just admiring the view, completely unfazed by the approaching storm? Curator: It makes me wonder how much these landscape images reinforced or even shaped the tastes of their audience, because prints like this would have been pretty widely distributed at the time. People might not have actually travelled far, but they could experience the "grandeur" of a stormy vista through Perelle's lens. Editor: That's an interesting point. And speaking of lenses, I find it fascinating how Baroque art so expertly crafted an artificial intensity in seemingly natural landscapes. It isn’t exactly subtle. There’s almost something aggressive about nature depicted in that manner. Curator: Exactly. The way artists were imagining landscapes, how they were choosing to frame it, the sort of "feeling" of wildness that they tried to inject, it has an interesting relation with the kind of actual control society was trying to exert over its surrounding landscapes. Editor: I like how this little print prompts big questions! Curator: Definitely food for thought when considering our relationship to landscape art.