A Cottage in a Mountain Valley 

Editor: Here we have Rev. William Henry Barnard's "A Cottage in a Mountain Valley." It's a small watercolor piece, very understated. The cottage seems so vulnerable against the looming mountain. What is your read on this, what story does it tell you? Curator: Vulnerable is a great word. For me, it whispers of the sublime—that romantic dance between beauty and a touch of terror. The cottage is a blip against the vastness. Does it feel…lonely? Or secure in its place? Editor: Hmmm… both, maybe? There’s a quiet strength in that isolation. Curator: Exactly! It’s about finding your place, your peace, in the face of something much bigger than yourself. What a lovely tension, right? Editor: Absolutely. Now I see it, a comforting solitude. Curator: I think the artist captured the beauty of solitude.