At the Edge of the Forest
ca. 1820
Medium
Oil on canvas
Dimensions
10 3/4 x 12 3/4 in. (27.3 x 32.4 cm)
Classification
Paintings
Department
European Paintings
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Collection, Wolfe Fund; and Wolfe Fund and Gift of Frederick Loeser, by exchange, 2008
Accession Number
2008.6
Tags
Art Historical Context
**At the Edge of the** by August Heinrich, around 1820, invites visitors into a serene yet evocative landscape painted in oil on canvas. just 10¾ x 12¾ inches, this intimate work captures the liminal space where dense woods meet open terrain, a motif common in early 19th European art. The modest scale suggests it was designed for private contemplation, perhaps adorning a collector's study rather than a grand salon. Oil on canvas was the gold standard for landscapes of this era, enabling Heinrich to layer rich pigments for textured foliage and subtle atmospheric effects. Though little is docum...