Landstraße mit vielen Wagen, Reitern und Fußgängern belebt 

Nicolaes van Lijnhoven made this pen and brown ink drawing, titled "Landstraße mit vielen Wagen, Reitern und Fußgängern belebt," which translates to "Country road enlivened with many wagons, riders and pedestrians." While the exact date of this drawing is unknown, consider its depiction of a bustling road. In the absence of artist statements, we can still consider it a depiction of everyday life, and what that might have meant for different people at the time. For the lower classes, such scenes were likely not picturesque, but reminders of labor and movement. How do we, as viewers distanced by time and class, engage with this depiction? Does the act of observing transform labor into aesthetic experience? Lijnhoven’s drawing invites reflection on the complex layers of perspective, and challenges us to consider the lives and experiences of those who traversed this very road.