Studieblad met ruitergevechten, vissers, koppen en honden 1839 - 1894

Curator: Today, we're observing a page extracted from a sketchbook belonging to Lambertus Lingeman, titled "Studieblad met ruitergevechten, vissers, koppen en honden," dating approximately from 1839 to 1894. Editor: It has the immediacy of raw thought; it feels both urgent and fleeting, filled with potential. There is an intense focus on men fighting on horses juxtaposed with intimate character sketches on the same surface, which lends itself to further interrogation of its function. Curator: Precisely, the layering offers us different scales and densities of linework that are fascinating. The way he uses quick, short strokes for the figures engaged in battle, versus longer, more deliberate lines for the portraits... Editor: It makes me question: is this simply a collection of sketches or a comment on different types of human subjects? Are we meant to juxtapose the anonymous bodies in war against intimate, named portraits? The placement, the intentional ordering…it all speaks to larger socio-political relations and their representations. Curator: Perhaps the relationships you are suggesting emerge precisely through Lingeman's manipulation of form and the tonal variation he gets by using what appears to be primarily pencil and possibly touches of watercolor on toned paper. The repetition of shapes generates a very lively page. Editor: I agree, but for me, those shapes are imbued with cultural baggage. Who gets remembered? Who becomes cannon fodder? Lingeman leaves so many threads for us to explore. I even spot dog figures interspersed as a domesticated creature watching the humans at war... Curator: Fascinating perspective, your reading definitely emphasizes the interplay of individual and collective experience as an exercise of power and artistic memory, something I had missed at first sight, too focused, perhaps, on its graphic qualities. Editor: And your point about the technical elements, the rapid strokes and deliberate portraits is incredibly valuable for unpacking all the latent cultural narratives embedded here.