Waterval 1872

Jan Gerard Smits made this etching called "Waterval," or "Waterfall," in the Netherlands sometime in the mid-to-late 19th century. Smits was working during the height of the Romantic era, when artists across Europe were turning away from the industrializing cities and towards the sublime beauty of the natural world. This etching participates in that broader trend. But we can also see here the specific influence of the Dutch landscape tradition, which, since the 17th century, had emphasized close observation and faithful rendering of the local terrain. Smits’ choice of the etching medium is also telling. Etchings could be produced in multiples and were thus more accessible to a wider public. Artists interested in critiquing the established art institutions of their time often turned to printmaking as a way to democratize access to art. As art historians, we can dig deeper by researching the exhibition venues and print markets in the Netherlands during Smits’ lifetime, as well as the aesthetic debates that shaped artistic taste at the time.