Wünsche (Yearnings) from Ein Handschuh (A Glove). Cyclus von zehn Compositionen radirt. Rad. Opus VI, Plate III. First edition

Art Historical Context

**Wünsche (Year)**, Plate III from Max Klinger's seminal 1881 series *Ein HandschuhA Glove): Cyclus von zehn Composition radirt* (Opus VI), invites visitors into the dreamlike world of German Symbolism. Klinger, a pioneering figure in the movement, crafted this first-edition etching to explore themes of longing and the subconscious. The series narrates a man's obsessive visions sparked by a lost glove in the snow, blending eroticism, fantasy, and mortality in ten intricate plates. Printed with assistance from F. Felsing, this work captures Plate III's evocative scene of human figures amid trees, symbolizing profound yearnings. Klinger's mastery shines in his mixed technique of etching, drypoint, and aquatint on chine collé—a delicate process adhering thin oriental paper to a sturdy support for subtle tonal gradations and rich textures. Drypoint's velvety burr and aquatint's painterly washes create atmospheric depth, evoking the misty, otherworldly mood of Symbolist art. At 18 5/16 x 26 inches, the large format amplifies its immersive quality. Acquired by The Metropolitan Museum of Art through the Isaacson-Draper Foundation Gift in 2009, this print exemplifies late 19th-century innovation in printmaking, bridging Romanticism and modern psychology. Klinger's glove cycle influenced artists like Klimt and Freud, making *Wünsche* a captivating window into the era's fascination with desire's hidden realms.

About the Artist

F. Felsing|Max Klinger (German|German) · |1857 – |1920

|German, Leipzig 1857–1920 Großjena