Das Waldfräulein (The Lady of the Forest)
Medium
etching on wove paper
Dimensions
plate: 72.2 × 53 cm (28 7/16 × 20 7/8 in.) sheet: 79.5 × 57.4 cm (31 5/16 × 22 5/8 in.)
Classification
Department
CG-E
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Gift of Ruth Cole Kainen
Accession Number
2012.92.415
Art Historical Context
Eugen Napoleon Neureuther's *Das Waldfräulein (The Lady of the Forest)*, created in 1845, captures the Romantic fascination with nature's mysteries and folklore. This etching depicts a ethereal female figure emerging from a dense, enchanted woodland, embodying the German tradition of woodland spirits like the *Waldfee* or forest nymphs from fairy tales by the Brothers Grimm. Neureuther, a prominent 19th-century German etcher, specialized in atmospheric landscapes infused with supernatural elements, reflecting the Romantic movement's emphasis on emotion, imagination, and the sublime power of un...