Baumkrone in starker Untersicht 1849

Peter Becker captured this striking, low-angle view of a treetop in a pencil drawing, sometime during the 19th century. Becker's careful attention to detail is evident in the intricate network of branches and leaves. The tree, viewed from below, fills the frame, and becomes a subject of both scientific study and personal expression. Think about the era in which Becker lived. He was deeply immersed in the intellectual and cultural milieu of his time. The 19th century saw the rise of scientific naturalism, with artists like Becker turning to the close observation of the natural world. Yet, this interest was coupled with a Romantic sensibility that saw nature as a source of spiritual experience. Becker's tree invites us to look up and contemplate the complexity of nature, but also to consider how the act of drawing can be an act of both objective recording and subjective interpretation. The drawing becomes a space where nature and the self intersect.