Build the wall set
Art, frame, light and hanging gear, picked together. Choose a size and finish; the wall preview shows exactly what you're getting. One button sends the whole kit to your Amazon cart.
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How big can you print it?
Standard frame sizes, turned to match the artwork. "Crops" is how much of the picture you lose filling that frame edge to edge — or keep it all and let a mat take up the difference.
| Frame | Effective dpi | Verdict | Crops |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 × 8 in | 362 | Gallery sharp | 9% |
| 14 × 11 in | 263 | Sharp up close | 8% |
| 16 × 12 in | 241 | Sharp up close | 3% |
| 20 × 16 in | 181 | Poster sharp | 9% |
| 24 × 18 in | 161 | Poster sharp | 3% |
| 36 × 24 in | 111 | Fine across a room | 8% |
| 40 × 30 in | 96 | Too soft | 3% |
The ticket
Footpath with a Bridge is a print by Caspar David Friedrich (German, Greifswald 1774–1840 Dresden), dated November 20–22, 1802(?). Etching; only state. Size on the museum record: Sheet: 8 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (20.4 × 28.5 cm) Plate: 3 11/16 × 6 1/16 in. (9.3 × 15.4 cm) Image: 3 7/16 × 5 9/16 in. (8.8 × 14.2 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art holds it in its Drawings and Prints collection — Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1927.
The Met catalogs Footpath with a Bridge as an etching; only state by Caspar David Friedrich. The museum dates it November 20–22, 1802(?), and files it under accession 27.36.2 in Drawings and Prints. It shows a built place, with architecture and figures that read as a small stage set; the detail rewards a larger print. The Met's scan measures 4,000 × 2,901 pixels, which prints about 13.3 × 9.7 in at 300 dpi and 26.7 × 19.3 in at a still-comfortable 150 dpi. Its wide proportions sit naturally over a sofa, console or bed, and the crop figures in the set builder show what a standard frame would trim. It is close to monochrome, so the frame sets the mood: black for contrast, white for air, or a thin natural wood for warmth. Line work lives on contrast. Print it on smooth bright paper and give it a wider frame or mat so the fine marks are not swallowed. A warm picture light a few inches above the frame does more for a print than any paper upgrade, and the hanging centre line belongs near 57 inches.
The Met released its scan under CC0, which means no permission, no fee and no credit line required. That file is 4,000 × 2,901 pixels — 11.6 megapixels — good for a gallery-sharp print up to 13.3 × 9.7 in. That is bigger than the print itself, which measures about 11.2 × 8 in — the file holds more detail than you can see standing in front of the original.Line work lives or dies on contrast. Print it on a smooth, bright paper and give it a wide mat: small graphic work drowns in a thin frame and a big empty border makes it look like it came out of a print room drawer.
On the receipt
- Artist
- Caspar David Friedrich
- Date
- November 20–22, 1802(?)
- Medium
- Etching; only state
- Size
- Sheet: 8 1/16 × 11 1/4 in. (20.4 × 28.5 cm) Plate: 3 11/16 × 6 1/16 in. (9.3 × 15.4 cm) Image: 3 7/16 × 5 9/16 in. (8.8 × 14.2 cm)
- Museum
- The Met · Drawings and Prints
- Accession
- 27.36.2
- License
- Public domain · CC0 1.0
- Source
- Museum record ↗
