Entführung (Abduction),

1880, published 1881

Considered the father of the modern graphic art movement in Germany, Klinger regarded the graphic arts as an autonomous aesthetic medium equal in importance to the art of painting—and a vehicle for fantasy and creative expression of the imagination. Klinger often produced his etchings in narrative cycles that were meant to be viewed in sequence. Abduction is the ninth of ten etchings from A Glove, Klinger’s earliest portfolio. The suite of hypnotic images tells the tale of a young artist who picks up a glove dropped by an attractive young woman. During the night, the artist has a dream in which the glove is found, enshrined, and abducted by a primeval, pterodactyl-like creature.