In the Meshes
Medium
etching
Dimensions
Plate: 572 x 278 mm Image: 505 x 228 mm Sheet: 645 x 352 mm
Classification
Department
CG-W
Museum
National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Credit
Reba and Dave Williams Collection, Gift of Reba and Dave Williams
Accession Number
2008.115.3509
Art Historical Context
**In the Meshes** (1887) is a captivating etching by Charles Frederick William Mielatz, a German-born American artist renowned for intricate depictions of New York City's bustling waterfronts. Created during the late 19th century's revival—a period when printmakers like Mielatz elevated the medium to rival painting in expressiveness—this work exemplifies his mastery of fine lines and tonal subtlety. Measuring a substantial plate size of 572 x 278 mm, the print invites viewers into a textured world likely evoking the city's industrial harbor life, with the title hinting at entangled fishing net...
About the Artist
Charles Frederick William Mielatz · 1864–1919
Charles Frederick William Mielatz (1864–1919) was an etcher and printmaker who became one of the most dedicated recorders of New York City in the age of its dramatic transformation into a modern metropolis. Born in Germany, he emigrated to the United States and settled in New York, where the spectacle of the rapidly changing city — its bridges, harbor, wharves, and crowded streets — became the cen...