Gateway of Caernarvon Castle 1833

Curator: William James Müller rendered this image of the "Gateway of Caernarvon Castle" in pen and brown ink. It's currently held at the Tate. Editor: It feels melancholic. The stark lines and emphasis on decay speak to the transience of power and the inevitable decline of even the grandest structures. Curator: Indeed. Castles were potent symbols of control, and their representation in art served to reinforce or question that power. Müller painted this image in 1833, and it’s important to consider what this castle represented in that era. Editor: I see a reflection on Welsh identity, and the complicated relationship between Wales and England. The castle is a beautiful ruin, but also a reminder of conquest and subjugation. Curator: It is a potent intersection of social history and artistic expression. Editor: It makes you consider the politics embedded in landscape art.