Stille Teilnahme 1887

Curator: Welcome. We're looking at Adolph Menzel's 1887 etching and drypoint, "Stille Teilnahme," which translates to "Silent Participation." It resides here at The Met. Editor: My first impression is how incredibly delicate the linework is. It conveys such an intimate mood. It looks like a surreptitious scene caught unawares. Curator: The medium indeed accentuates this sense. Menzel’s command over the drypoint allows for these rich, velvety blacks contrasted with delicate grey halftones, contributing to the intimate feel. We are witnessing what he might have intended to be a genre scene depicting contemporary women of the time. Editor: When you describe this work in those terms, my interest immediately jumps to what would compel an artist in 1887 to labor over portraying what would amount to, perhaps, simply an indoor snapshot. Curator: Perhaps Menzel saw in these quiet moments an embodiment of larger societal themes— the role of women in 19th-century Prussian society for instance. Through subtle gesture and facial expression, a narrative of restraint and observation emerges. Editor: Considering its social environment, it would be relevant to explore the availability and quality of materials such as paper, needles, and etching grounds to an artist like Menzel in the late 19th century, perhaps shedding light on production circumstances that shaped its unique characteristics. What did these circumstances communicate in 1887? What do they tell us today? Curator: The restrained palette of the print only enhances the power of composition and line. See how he employs stark contrasts, how he models the form—each figure a carefully orchestrated mass of intricate lines that gives such compelling directionality to the scene. Editor: I now see this print also as the outcome of the technologies available to Menzel, his particular choice of materials, and even his relationship with the distributors and consumers. "Silent Participation" as a quiet meditation reflecting, through the work and labor, larger socio-economic narratives surrounding Menzel. Curator: Precisely. In appreciating Menzel’s mastery of formal and material relationships in this seemingly minor key image, we perceive, in a subtle expression, echoes of society itself. Editor: Absolutely. And it prompts us to ask further questions, expanding what exactly constitutes 'participation.'