Satyr Pursuing a Nymph

Carl Wilhelm Kolbe wrote that, while walking in the forests near Dessau in northeastern Germany, he could “hear a satyr rustling through the bulrushes in pursuit of a nymph.” The artist immersed himself in a version of nature permeated with the poetry of ancient myths, as seen here. Although equally adept at depicting figures and landscape, he claimed that it was “trees that have made me an artist.” Nicknamed “Oak Kolbe,” he lavished substantial attention on the individual characteristics of his trees, including the massive twisting oak that dominates this print.