Thun aan het Thunermeer 1890 - 1897

Anna Catharina Maria van Eeghen made this pencil drawing of Thun aan het Thunnermeer in 1949. Van Eeghen's landscape invites us to consider the changing relationship between art, nature, and society in the mid-20th century. In this pencil drawing, the artist is showing the social structures of her time, and particularly the culture around the landscape. Consider the gaze of the artist: she is not showing us a sublime view, but rather a human-scale environment with houses. The cultural geography of Switzerland shaped artistic production by providing a unique landscape with which to grapple. By choosing to represent this scene, the artist may have been embracing a progressive stance by critiquing the traditional artistic institutions that promote more traditionally awe-inspiring landscapes. To fully understand this work, we might research the institutional history of Swiss landscape painting. Art history thrives on understanding the intricate connections between art and its context.