Bosgezicht met een waterpartij 1830 - 1878

Curator: Here we have Johannes Pieter van Wisselingh's "Bosgezicht met een waterpartij", or "Wooded Landscape with a Body of Water", estimated to be created between 1830 and 1878. It's an ink drawing, currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Wow, okay, first impression: it's… overwhelmingly leafy. I feel like I’m squinting to see through a dense curtain of trees and foliage. All in moody black and white, it feels almost gothic. Curator: It certainly captures that Romantic era fascination with the sublime power of nature. Artists were often grappling with their relationship to an increasingly industrialized world, and idealized, untamed landscapes were a way to reconnect, or perhaps escape. Editor: Escape, definitely. Though maybe get the mosquito repellent ready first! I’m getting the sense that while beautiful, this forest would swallow you whole. I am also interested in how the artist creates depth in a seemingly chaotic fashion, inviting the spectator inside of this almost palpable, albeit imagined, world. Curator: Consider the use of ink, it provides high contrast allowing a lot of definition to give structure to such wild nature, typical in realism. It reflects a desire for accuracy, but even in a ‘realistic’ rendering, there’s an interpretive element. The detail might capture botanical accuracy but the dark and intense feeling conveys more of a mood than a mere documentation. Editor: Agreed, the execution feels almost dreamlike. The more I look at the water, for example, the less like water it seems! More like liquid ink… a mirrored portal into… something else entirely. It gives a sense of mystery within the mundane. It’s an invitation into an exploration, an introspection. Curator: So it's both an observation of nature, and perhaps, a reflection on the human condition within it. Editor: Exactly. Makes you wonder what Wisselingh was escaping *from*, right? Curator: A worthy question! Thank you, that really changes my view of it, seeing it less about a societal movement and more about one artist. Editor: Anytime, it helps me feel more present to share a new view of classic art.