About the Work
Ludwig Metz took this pencilled sketchbook with him on his journey through Greece and Italy in the spring of 1870. The dates and places noted beneath the drawings reveal that from March to April the 48-year-old Metz visited Nafplio, Tiryns, Argos, Mycenae, Kalamaki, Corinth but also Acqua Acetosa, Naples and Pozzuoli. He almost exclusively captured landscapes, partly with detailed studies of medieval and ancient buildings or ruins. The individual sketchbook pages were used more or less in order, whereby Metz often turned the book’s portrait format into a landscape format, leaving the verso blank. The drawings seem – judging by their style – to have been created rather quickly, appear barely composed and comparatively reduced in detail. They must have been done on the road, standing up, which also explains the clumsy writing, which is difficult to read. Nevertheless, many of the historical buildings are identifiable. Also remarkable are the artist’s notes and calculations, which appear regularly in the book and fill the last pages completely. ‒ See the sketchbook SG 2746 on Metz’s journey to Greece in 1882, also to be found in the Städel Museum.
For a full sketchbook description, please see “Research”.
