Das Mährchen vom Goldlaub / Le conte de la feuille d'or 1820 - 1865

Editor: We’re looking at "Das Märchen vom Goldlaub / Le conte de la feuille d'or," or "The Tale of the Golden Leaf" by Friedrich Gustav Schulz, created sometime between 1820 and 1865. It's a lithograph, a type of print. The whole piece looks like a comic strip, telling some sort of story. What strikes you about this artwork? Curator: Ah, a story unfolding like autumn leaves, isn’t it? For me, this piece feels like stumbling upon a half-remembered dream. Notice the distinct panels - like windows into another world. It’s Romantic in its embrace of folklore and emotion, but told with a kind of… folksy pragmatism? It feels didactic. A little moral tale perhaps? What do you think of the angel imagery popping up in certain squares? Editor: I hadn’t really considered it being didactic… An angel sort of keeps watch on the character, but do you mean more like it is trying to teach something? Curator: Exactly! These prints were very often morality tales of how to live a good life or not, told in serial frames. We can almost reconstruct the story from these scenes. It's both innocent and insightful – like a child's view of right and wrong. A little bit old-fashioned for sure. Do the colour choices suggest anything? Editor: Hmm, the muted colours and the almost naive way of illustrating makes it look to me like a child's book, especially an older one. But I agree the composition also feels very 'purposeful' rather than exploratory... Curator: Precisely. It's about guidance and virtue but not at the expense of visual delight. In many ways that period echoed values still pertinent to our own - but how would you make it modern? Editor: Maybe an Instagram account? Little drawings on TikTok? Definitely something short form, focused on visuals. I suppose some things stay relevant even after art styles evolve so dramatically. Thanks for your insights. Curator: My pleasure. Perhaps that's the real magic: that old stories in new skins never really go out of fashion.