About the Work
At the age of 26, Friedrich Metz travelled through the southwest of Baden-Württemberg and Switzerland, spending time in Breisgau, the Black Forest and at Lake Constance from late May to early June 1846. From June to mid-July, he visited Schaffhausen, Zurich, Lucerne, Lungern and Meiringen, among other places, and probably also the Rigi and Bernese Alps. On this route, which can be reconstructed using the dates and places regularly noted in the sketchbook, Metz drew numerous wide valley and above all mountain landscapes in pencil. As in the other sketchbooks used in the 1840s, these landscape sections often show individual buildings or villages in the centre (see e.g. Inv. SG 2756 and SG 2820, Städel Museum). However, especially in its second half, there are also views of completely untouched nature, mainly views over rocks and of the Alpine summits. Metz captured his travel impressions with confident strokes, partly quickly sketching, partly realising them further. For most of the landscapes he turned the portrait-format booklet by 90 degrees into landscape format.
For a full sketchbook description, please see “Research”.
