Figuren in een landschap met wilgen 1862

Willem Linnig the second made this small etching titled 'Figures in a Landscape with Willows' in 1862. Linnig was part of a family of painters in 19th century Belgium during a period of burgeoning national identity. Though he came from a family of artists, Linnig developed his landscape and genre scenes during a time of significant social change. The etching's attention to detail and idyllic rendering of the landscape, reflect an artistic focus on the everyday. Yet, it's hard to ignore the limited scope of who populates these scenes. How do we reconcile the intimate scale of the work with the broader exclusion of certain groups? Linnig’s art exists within a context of growing industrialization, colonialism and class division. His detailed observation of nature and the human figure is a form of visual inventory, subtly reflecting and shaping societal values and hierarchies. The artist is asking us to notice, and perhaps, to question what is missing.