God verschijnt aan Noach 1776

Johann Gottlieb Prestel created this brown ink drawing, "God Appears to Noah," sometime in the late 18th century. Prestel lived through the Enlightenment, a period of immense social and political upheaval which challenged traditional religious and political structures. Here, we see God as a powerful, bearded figure, floating down from the heavens, surrounded by cherubic children. The classical aesthetic combined with the scene's overt religiosity positions the artwork within the artistic and cultural tensions of the late 1700s. Noah and his family's reactions range from fearful supplication to subtle curiosity. What might it have meant to Prestel and his audience to depict this moment of divine intervention with such a strong emphasis on human emotions and interactions? The drawing uses the biblical narrative as a lens through which to consider the complex relationship between humanity and divinity during a period of revolutionary change and to consider how society grapples with moments of profound transformation.