Moonlight 1682 - 1719

Painted by Christoph Ludwig Agricola, likely in the early 18th century, "Moonlight" employs oil on canvas, a now-conventional medium that was then still relatively novel. In this somber painting, material choice is key. Agricola built up layers of pigment in thin glazes, playing with the inherent qualities of oil paint to create a luminescent effect. This approach, coupled with dark undertones, brings a dreamlike quality to the scene. Oil paints were beginning to be manufactured and sold commercially at this time, making artwork more available to a wider audience. The painting's material presence is quite subtle, and the artist's hand is consciously concealed. Yet this very suppression of the evidence of labor is revealing. The ethereal atmosphere and focus on light as a subject in itself signal a shift from pure representation towards a modern aesthetic, which still resonates today.