The artwork, titled “Rhaetian Railway, Davos,” was created by Ernst Ludwig Kirchner in 1917. It is an oil painting on canvas, measuring 94 by 94 centimeters, and it belongs to the Expressionism art movement. The piece is a landscape genre painting and is currently housed in the Folkwang Museum in Essen, Germany.
In this artwork, bold and dramatic colors are employed to depict the scene of a railway traversing through a mountainous and forested terrain. Kirchner’s expressive brushstrokes and use of vivid, contrasting colors serve to heighten the emotional impact of the landscape. The train, central to the composition, is surrounded by dynamic shapes and lines that convey movement and energy. The background features sweeping, almost abstract forms of trees and mountains, contributing to the overall sense of dynamism and intensity characteristic of Expressionism.
