Bergachtig landschap met twee piramides en een aantal figuren 1625 - 1673

This is "Bergachtig landschap met twee piramides en een aantal figuren," a pen and brown ink drawing by Salvator Rosa. The composition is dominated by rugged, mountainous forms sketched with energetic lines. Two pyramid-like shapes rise in the center, flanked by craggy rock formations and trees. Rosa’s rapid, almost frantic strokes create a sense of wild, untamed nature, perhaps evoking a sublime feeling. The figures are dwarfed by the landscape. Rosa destabilizes the traditional landscape by emphasizing its chaotic and irregular aspects rather than its picturesque qualities. There's a tension between the romantic depiction of nature and the sublime terror it inspires, typical of Rosa's artistic exploration. The semiotic system at play here uses the jagged lines and stark contrasts to signify the raw power of the natural world, challenging the more idealized landscapes of his contemporaries. The use of line, rather than color or detailed form, underscores the drawing’s emphasis on structure and raw emotion. The image invites ongoing interpretations and challenges conventional understandings of nature, aesthetics, and the sublime.