German
illustrator Eugen Napoleon Neureuther worked in a number of media but his
most striking illustrations of folktales are his ornate engravings. Done in
black and white, the illustrations are symmetrically composed with the main
figures positioned centrally in a gothic nave formed from both architectural
and natural elements.
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to enlarge
Click
to enlarge
In the illustration, we can see a tension between romantic elements and classical
elements. Along the bottom of the poster, plants appear in something that
approximates the disorderliness of nature and the vines that frame the poster
are meant to suggest the wild barrier that magically sprang up around the
castle when its occupants fell asleep. However, the symmetry of the curling
tendrils works against any sense of wildness that the vines might create.
Click to enlarge
Despite the gothic elements like the bodies hanging in the vines, the composition is largely classical in its structure. A center line divides the piece in symmetrical halves and elements are positioned accordingly. The sleeping figures rest in symmetrical positions, balanced architecturally. The king and queen, the other attendants, the lyre players--even the dead bodies--are balanced. Only the prince and the princess are slightly--ever so slightly--to the right of center, emphasizing the movement of his kiss and the direction of his commitment.
The closer one looks at this illustration, the more detail one notices--the witch in the background, the cat on the roof. It almost shows us the fly on the wall that the manuscript mentions. Yet one of the most amazing details is found in the texture of the stone that makes up the foundation of the nave. A close examination reveals that is produced by the finely printed text of Briar Rose.
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