Lot 12 Dα

Spitzweg's paintings are often rightly described as ‘poetic’. “The Intercepted Letter” illustrates another facet of Spitzweg's art, namely his great talent as a narrator.

The work depicts the picturesque façade of a house in which we witness a small, everyday tragicomedy. Upstairs in the attic lives a smart, blonde student who is sending a love letter to his sweetheart one floor below. The addressee doesn't notice a thing, because she's a good girl and is entirely absorbed in her knitting. Her governess, on the other hand, is all the more interested - with a sure instinct, she recognises the incoming danger and has raised her hands in a dramatic gesture of horror, her mouth open in a silent scream.

As in other works by Spitzweg, perception is a central element of the pictorial narrative; the comedy of the depiction arises from the fact that the viewer sees what the individual actors do not see: The student does not see that his foolhardy action will not reach the addressee; the girl does not even notice the love letter intended for her; the governess, on the other hand, sees the disaster approaching but is unable to act.

The figure of the governess demonstrates Spitzweg's oft noted ability to create visual punch lines, but it also reveals his storytelling talent, as the artist leaves it up to the viewer - who has an overview of the entire tableau - to tell the tale to the end. The governess is in a dilemma: She could express her indignation by screaming, but that would only draw the girl's attention to the letter. She could also try to tear the letter off the thread by jumping to the window, but this would alert the student and perhaps encourage him to try again. She could also attempt to close the shutters of the window under a pretence, but this would be suspicious in the middle of the day. The governess's silent scream and her gesture of terror are a delaying moment in this narrative - how the story will continue is left open and up to the viewer's imagination.

As is usual in Spitzweg's works, the successful narrative goes hand in hand with brilliant painterly quality. This can be seen, for example, in the subtle depiction of the sunlit façade with the dramatic chiaroscuro created by the shadow (note the comedic factor of the menacing shadow cast by the figure of the student on the façade, as if it were crawling towards the girl like a phantom). Another version of this motif can now be found in the Museum Georg Schäfer in Schweinfurt (inv. no. 141).