Adolph Menzel
German, 1815–1905
In a Railway Carriage (After a Night's Journey)
INV-2153
Adolph Menzel
German, 1815–19051851
In a Railway Carriage (After a Night's Journey)
Adolph Menzel German, 1815–1905 →gouacheprints and drawing
Date
1851
Medium
Gouache, with touches of pastel and oil paint, on cream wove paper, laid down on Japanese paper
Dimensions
27.3 × 33 cm (10 3/4 × 13 in.)
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Location
Chicago, IL
Credit
Regenstein Acquisition Fund
This is a remarkable example of an early work from a pioneering proponent of Realism. Menzel revealed the unglamorous aspect of bourgeois train travel in many compelling details: a man asleep in a contorted position, a wistful woman gazing out at early morning light, the detritus of their journey around them. Menzel began to use opaque watercolor (gouache) in 1850, combining it with pastel (and oil) as seen here.
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