Kompositionsudkast til Blichers novelle "Vinhandleren og Herremanden", p. 208 - Afskeden ved Sæbygård, kvadreret 1932 - 1935

This is a sketch by Niels Larsen Stevns for Blicher’s novella, made with ink on graph paper. I love seeing an artist working out ideas, trying to capture the essence of a story through quick gestures and lines. The graph paper peeks through, a rigid structure underlying the fluidity of the drawing. The ink is applied in short, energetic strokes, almost scribbles, that define the forms of figures in motion. The runner, for instance, is rendered with a flurry of marks suggesting speed and urgency. The density of the ink varies, creating areas of shadow and light that add depth to the composition. Look how Stevns uses the grid to frame certain figures and how this creates an interesting dynamic between the spontaneity of the drawing and the order of the grid. It reminds me of the way Philip Guston embraced a kind of messy figuration, or maybe even Cy Twombly, in the way it combines drawing and writing. It is all about embracing the messy stuff of life, even when we are trying to tell a good story.