Monte Palastrine 1789 - 1792

Niels Gundersen Lund made this drawing of Monte Palastrine with pen and brown ink. The work invites us to consider the cultural fascination with ruins in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The drawing shows the Monte Palastrine ruins, in Italy, which became a popular destination for Northern European artists, particularly from Denmark and Germany. These artists were drawn to Italy by the aesthetics of the ‘picturesque’ and the ‘sublime’. Here, Lund uses sepia ink to emphasise the ancient structures with an eye to the light. This interest reflected broader shifts in European culture, namely the rise of nationalism and the romanticisation of the past. Artists and intellectuals sought to connect with what they saw as the roots of Western civilization, finding inspiration in the remnants of ancient societies. This led to new institutional practices and a focus on studying the historical and artistic treasures found there. To understand Lund’s drawing, one might look to travelogues, letters, and other archival materials that document the experiences of artists in Italy during this period. This kind of research highlights how art is always embedded in specific social, cultural, and institutional contexts.