A Civita Castellana - Jacob Wilhelm Mechau

Gift of Dorothy Braude Edinburg to the Harry B. and Bessie K. Braude Memorial Collection

"A Civita Castellana" by Jacob Wilhelm Mechau (1793) Etching on ivory laid paper.

Commentary

"A Civita Castellana" by Jacob Wilhelm Mechau (1793) invites a close look at how form and feeling work together. The print-based method rewards close viewing, where line, texture, and contrast do most of the expressive wor k. Themes to notice include etching. This piece is held in the source collection's Prints and Drawings collection. Jacob Wilhelm Mechau is the artist behind this work. A useful anchor for reading the piece: Jacob Wilhelm Mechau German, 1745-1808. The work is cataloged within a Germany cultural context. How to look at this work: It is cataloged as etching, which gives a clue to how the museum frames the object. Its medium (Etching on ivory laid paper) affects texture, durability, and how detail reads at different distances. Its listed dimensions (Image: 24.7 × 35.5 cm (9 3/4 × 14 in.); Plate: 28 × 38 cm (11 1/16 × 15 in.); Sheet: 27.8 × 50.1 cm (11 × 19 3/4 in.)) suggest how intimate or monumental it may feel in person. Subject cues from the catalog include etching. Compare this reading with the museum record at the source collection: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/185150

Sources: Art Institute of Chicago; Art Institute of Chicago / Public Records; Art Institute of Chicago Collection Data