1758
ink
paper
From the collection of National Gallery of Art
Dominant colour
Self-Portrait with a Spider in the Window is a 1758 ink by Georg Friedrich Schmidt, a Romanticism work, held at National Gallery of Art.
This etching shows a man sitting at a desk, wearing a wide-brimmed hat and a ruffled collar. His face is serious, and he holds a piece of paper or tool in one hand. Behind him, a window reveals a spider crawling on the glass, while a map or drawing hangs on the wall. A sword and a bottle sit on the desk, too. The spider in the window is the quiet oddity here—it’s not something you’d expect in a portrait. The artist used fine lines to create shadows and textures, making everything look almost three-dimensional. Next, check out the technique: etching to see how artists like this made detailed prints.
Georg Friedrich Schmidt was a German engraver, etcher and pastel painter, in the Rococo style.
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