Wooded Landscape with Cows

This drawing features a picturesque forest scene near Lake Starnberg (Starnberger See) in southern Bavaria. For centuries, the lake and its surroundings have provided a popular recreation area for the residents of the nearby city of Munich. The composition is classical, with repoussoir elements (rock, trees) framing the image at either side in the foreground. The scenery is dominated by massive trees and dense foliage; the draftsman left areas of the sheets untouched to serve as highlights. The sheet is signed, so Dillis must have considered it a finished work in its own right.

Wooded Landscape with Cows beautifully illustrates how Johann Georg von Dillis, one of the leading artists of German Romanticism, revolutionized the approach to landscape drawing in the German context, not only working outdoors sur le motif, but also by using watercolor in very spontaneous and inventive ways. Here, he began with energetic pencil work, to which he added gray washes as well as touches of green and blue watercolor. The result is a fresh, dynamic and sensitive vision of nature.