Heuvelachtig landschap met reizigers 1768 - 1827

This etching, "Hilly landscape with travelers" was made by Johannes van Cuylenburgh in the Netherlands sometime in the first half of the 19th century. It depicts a couple walking along a path in a rural landscape, with rolling hills in the background. In the Netherlands at this time, there was a strong tradition of landscape painting, but this etching speaks to the social realities of the time. The figures are small and anonymous, suggesting the insignificance of the individual in the face of nature. But more than that, their presence in the landscape draws our attention to the economic and social changes that were taking place in the Netherlands at this time. Who were these people? Where were they going? These are the kinds of questions that art historians ask when they look at works like this. By consulting historical sources such as census records, maps, and other documents, we can begin to understand the social context in which this image was made. We can discover how the cultural and institutional forces shaped not only how art was made, but also how it was seen.