Simplicius in the Wilderness (Simplicius in der Waldeinöde) from Intermezzi, Opus IV
Max Klinger
German, 1857–1920
1881
An etching with chine-collé by Max Klinger that places a lone figure beside a massive boulder in a wild clearing to turn a landscape into a scene of solitude and inner exile.
What hits you first is the scale contrast—the minute human form dwarfed by rock and trees—and the intense, tactile variety of line and wash that makes soil, bark, and cloud feel richly textured and charged with quiet drama.
Klinger’s print exemplifies how late‑19th‑century artists pushed etching beyond illustration toward symbolic, psychological storytelling, using techniques like chine‑collé to achieve deeper tonal effects and influence modern printmaking.
Medium
Etching with chine collé from a portfolio of seven etching and aquatints and five etchings, all with chine collé
Dimensions
plate: 10 1/2 x 16 3/4" (26.7 x 42.6 cm); sheet: 17 9/16 x 24 13/16" (44.6 x 63 cm)
Classification
Department
Credit
Given anonymously
Accession
249.1950.10
Palette
Exhibitions
