Eine Mutter, ihr Kind umarmend 

Curator: Here we have "Eine Mutter, ihr Kind umarmend" which translates to "A Mother Embracing her Child" a tender sketch currently held at the Städel Museum. Though undated, this work on paper is attributed to Marie Ellenrieder. Editor: Ah, the ephemeral nature of pencil on paper, capturing a moment so universally felt! There's something almost ghost-like about it, the lines so delicate. You feel you could blow it away. Curator: Indeed. Ellenrieder, a German artist associated with the Nazarene movement, often explored themes of motherhood and childhood in her work. We see it recurring across a lot of her painting and illustrations too, always seeking a sort of pure idealism. Editor: It’s fascinating that while Ellenrieder's name isn't as recognizable as some of her male contemporaries, her delicate treatment transforms something ordinary into something almost holy, a moment suspended between reality and some imagined, heavenly version. Curator: Precisely! The lack of strong, definitive lines— the kind associated with say academic drawing of the era--suggests a more personal, intimate purpose, like a sketch from a personal sketchbook, more concerned with feeling than accurate record keeping. Editor: Which adds to that feeling of immediacy, doesn't it? As if we’re peering into Ellenrieder’s own quiet, tender contemplation of motherhood. It has that wonderful tentative vulnerability like spying on someone's private, happiest daydream. Curator: And placing it in the context of 19th century Europe, it reflects societal expectations around motherhood, but it doesn’t glorify it exactly. There isn't that hard idealised gleam in it we may associate with popular portrayals. Editor: Which actually makes the relationship between them more palpable, more humane! Instead of seeing figures staged for perfection, we sense true affection, intimacy. It invites you into this warm sphere of love. Curator: A fleeting emotion given tangible shape—however lightly—and a compelling piece offering insight into both Ellenrieder's artistic practice, as well as a sense of the 19th century cultural ideas. Editor: Well put! It certainly makes one consider the unseen labor and artistic merit that sketches such as these carry...like little whispered secrets we were lucky enough to overhear.