The Good Samaritan 

Curator: This pencil and chalk drawing on paper, titled "The Good Samaritan," is housed here at the Städel Museum, rendered by Wilhelm Steinhausen. Editor: It evokes such a sense of weary solemnity. The monochromatic palette certainly underscores the weight of the narrative. Curator: Absolutely. Steinhausen's choice of readily available materials—chalk and pencil—connects this parable directly to the common laborer and the accessible tools of craft. There's no pretense of high art here; it's rooted in everyday accessibility. This also emphasizes the directness and honesty associated with manual work and the biblical theme itself. Editor: Yet, notice the dynamic composition. The artist leads our eyes purposefully from the shadowed foreground with the central figures, toward the rising sun cresting above what could be a rough-hewn mountainous setting, which hints at the future—or perhaps spiritual hope. The stark simplicity of the lines only emphasizes the dramatic contrast. Curator: The medium inherently lends itself to the subject matter too, doesn’t it? Chalk and pencil, unlike paint, are additive but can also be subtractive. They reflect a transient mode of artmaking and invite us to see labor as both a creative and at times destructive act central to the narrative. The very act of Steinhausen using chalk or pencil is so connected to acts of everyday work, and even the most elementary form of mark making. Editor: That's a powerful point. Beyond its subject matter, its artistry lies in its masterful arrangement of line and light to guide the viewer through the layers of the story itself. Curator: Considering how readily Steinhausen could source pencil and chalk, he has crafted a timeless piece with such meager tools. Editor: Yes, looking at Steinhausen’s “Good Samaritan,” it seems like the raw simplicity only heightens the inherent tension. The light and shadow are particularly expressive.