Approaching Spring c. 1839

Editor: Here we have Johann Wilhelm Schirmer’s etching, “Approaching Spring,” from around 1839, currently residing here at the Art Institute of Chicago. It's on paper, which I think adds a lovely, almost fragile, quality to this Romantic-style landscape. I find the overall scene quite peaceful and reflective. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Peaceful is spot on, but for me, it sings of that in-between time. You know, that pregnant pause right before everything bursts into bloom? Schirmer, with his delicate etching lines, has captured that perfectly. He offers us not just a pretty landscape, but a spiritual space, really. It’s Romanticism at its core – finding the divine in the everyday, in nature, and especially in transitions. Look how the light falls! Does it strike you as hopeful? Editor: I can see that. The light definitely draws my eye towards the distant building. Almost like a beacon. Curator: Exactly! Is it a castle or perhaps a cathedral? The man standing atop the knoll seems headed in its direction. And consider those sheep down below drinking and lazing around near the water troughs. Schirmer might have thought about that shepherd in Virgil's Eclogues… the quiet pastoral life. Editor: So you see this drawing as perhaps representing more than just scenery, maybe reflecting societal and historical aspirations and anxieties through that Romantic lens? Curator: Precisely! This work, and others like it, represent a profound longing, a desire to reconnect with nature as industrialization changed the landscape— both physically and culturally. But it’s not just about escaping to some rural fantasy. Editor: It's thought-provoking. I initially just saw a simple landscape but, I think now, I see layers. Thank you for opening my eyes to the subtle symbolism within the piece. Curator: My pleasure! Isn't that the magic of art, though? The way a simple image can whisper volumes. And spring… spring is like a little miracle, right there on a sheet of paper.