View from the Albrechtsburg in Klosterneuburg

Landscape painting in the 18th century generally meant constructing idealized scenes according to strict rules. But more and more artists were venturing into nature in order to make preparatory studies for paintings they would subsequently execute in the studio. In this work, Johann Christian Brand recorded his impressions from the surroundings of Vienna. His painterly treatment of the clouds and the nuanced hues of the foreground testify to his study of the natural world. The view looks toward Klosterneuburg from the town fortifications of the Albrechtsburg, which survived into the 19th century.