The artwork titled “Landscape with trees,” created by Paula Modersohn-Becker circa 1902, is an example of the Expressionist movement. Measuring a modest 9.9 x 14 cm, the artwork falls into the landscape genre, presenting a vista compact with emotional and visual intensity.
The artwork depicts a scene dominated by a variety of trees, each rendered with vigorous, expressive lines that convey both the movement and the sturdy presence of the trunks and branches. The trees’ foliage is suggested with swirls and loops, which add a dynamic and almost whimsical quality to the canopy. The work shows a strong interplay of light and shadow, suggested by the contrasting densities of the etched lines. In the background, beyond the immediate thicket of the tree trunks, there seems to be a hint of a fence or structure, implying human presence or perhaps a boundary within the natural landscape. The ground undulates with the same vitality as the foliage, with the artist using scribbled lines to define the earth, creating a sense of depth and texture. Overall, the artwork conveys a strong sense of the vitality and organic nature of the scene, characteristic of the Expressionist desire to depict emotional experience rather than physical reality.
