Moonshine on the Elbe

1898

Karl Wilhelm Arthur Illies

Associated Names
Karl Wilhelm Arthur Illies

Artist, German, 1870 - 1952

The image shows a nocturnal scene over water. The horizon line divides the water from low land. A fully visible moon is above the horizon, casting a bright light on the water below. The brushstrokes are textured, creating a soft atmosphere. The color scheme is dark with hints of pale yellowish-white where the moonlight reflects. The scene fades into shadow, emphasizing the vast view.
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Artwork overview

  • Medium

    color soft-ground and aquantint on wove paper

  • Credit Line

    Gift of Ruth Cole Kainen

  • Dimensions

    plate: 20.8 x 15.6 cm (8 3/16 x 6 1/8 in.)
    sheet: 3.13 x 22.5 cm (1 1/4 x 8 7/8 in.)

  • Accession Number

    2012.92.303

Artwork history & notes

Provenance

Unidentified mark (two overlapping "B" initials in yellow ink). (Martin Sumers Graphics, New York); Ruth Kainen [1922-2009], Washington, D.C. (Lugt 4740), purchased April 25, 1979; Gift to NGA, 2012.

Associated Names

Exhibition History

2014

  • Modern German Prints and Drawings from the Kainen Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, 2014.

Bibliography

1970

  • Schiefler, Gustav. Das graphische Werk von Arthur Illies. Hamburg, 1970: no.62.

Inscriptions

lower right in graphite: A Illies

Wikidata ID

Q76556575

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