Coastal View (A Foreboding of Sadness) 1893 - 1894

Vittore Grubicy created this etching, "Coastal View (A Foreboding of Sadness)", using brown ink on paper. This seascape taps into the late 19th-century Symbolist movement, in which artists turned away from realistic representation and toward inner experience and subjective vision. Grubicy uses the landscape not to reflect the visible world, but to evoke a mood. The dark, brooding sky and murky water create a sense of unease and foreboding that’s reinforced by the title itself. This etching was made in Italy. To fully understand the meaning of this image, we might look at the cultural context in which it was created. The Symbolist movement often reflected a sense of pessimism and disillusionment with modern society. By studying the writings of Symbolist poets and critics, and consulting historical records, we can gain a deeper understanding of the cultural and institutional forces that shaped Grubicy's art.