Torhaus von der InnenseiteIllustration für_ Eugen Zeller, Aus sieben Jahrhunderten der Geschichte Beuggens, Wernigerode_ Gottlieb Koezle, [1921], S. 366 1920

This illustration, "Torhaus von der Innenseite" by Otto Ubbelohde, made for Eugen Zeller's book, feels like stepping into a different time. Imagine the artist, pen in hand, meticulously building this scene with countless tiny lines. There's a real sense of place here, a feeling of history layered upon history. I think about Ubbelohde, sitting perhaps in a quiet corner, deeply absorbed in rendering every brick, every leaf, every shadow. What was he thinking about as he drew? Was he aware of the weight of the past, the stories embedded in these stones? Look at the way he uses line to create depth and texture. The cross-hatching gives the stone a tangible roughness, while the delicate lines of the foliage suggest a softer, more organic presence. The figures in the foreground, they seem to be frozen in time, but what could they be doing? It makes me think about how artists are always in dialogue with the past, drawing inspiration from what came before, and adding their own unique voice to the conversation. Each line is an embodied expression that encourages endless stories.