Gevangene en cipier

About this artwork

collector's mark: Lugt 2228

Art Historical Context

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowie, a prolific Polish-German artist active in Berlin during the Enlightenment, created *Gevangene en cipier* ("Prisoner and Jailer in 1779. This intimate etching, measuring just 111 mm high by 65 mm wide, exemplifies Chodowiecki's mastery of small-scalemaking. Renowned for over 2,000 etchings and engravings, he specialized in vivid genre scenes from everyday 18th-century life, infused with moral and social commentary that resonated with a growing middle-class audience. The title suggests a poignant encounter between captivity and authority, a theme common in Chodowiecki's oeuvre, which drew from literature, theater, and contemporary events to explore human emotions and societal tensions. Produced amid the intellectual ferment of the late Enlightenment, the work likely reflects broader concerns about justice, reform, and the human condition just before the upheavals of the French Revolution. Etching allowed Chodowiecki to achieve fine lines and expressive detail on a copper plate, making his prints affordable and widely disseminated through books and portfolios. The presence of the collector's mark Lugt 2228 underscores its provenance and enduring appeal to connoisseurs, highlighting how such modest works captured the era's spirit with remarkable economy and empathy.

About the Artist

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki · 1726–1801

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki (1726–1801) was a German painter and printmaker of Polish-Huguenot descent who became the most celebrated graphic artist in 18th-century Germany. Born in Danzig (now Gdańsk), he created approximately 2,000 etchings that serve as an invaluable visual record of German bourgeois life during the Enlightenment. Largely self-taught, Chodowiecki moved to Berlin in 1743 and ach...