Hert 1840 - 1880

Curator: Here we have "Hert," an ink drawing created sometime between 1840 and 1880. The artist is Johannes Tavenraat, and it's part of the collection at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Wow, just looking at this sketch, I immediately feel the wild, unbridled energy. It's more than just a drawing; it’s like a fleeting glimpse of movement captured on paper. Curator: Absolutely. Tavenraat's use of ink is quite masterful. You can see how the varying pressures of his hand on the drawing surface create depth and dynamism. Consider the production – ink, readily available, allows for democratic accessibility in creating landscape scenes featuring animals. Editor: Yes, and that's what makes it so appealing. The simple use of materials contributes to the rough and ready feel. It feels urgent, capturing a genuine interaction with nature. It also lends itself beautifully to this very loose portrayal that, arguably, crosses into caricature. The deer looks more joyful and less noble somehow. Curator: I think that tension you perceive reflects broader social shifts too, from this period, which increasingly began challenging accepted approaches in art and society through democratization. Looking beyond conventional techniques—the rougher sketch becomes a symbol itself. Editor: Exactly! I feel this in his treatment of form; for me, they aren't clinically precise depictions of form, but expressive marks of being, like calligraphy reflecting some hidden language of nature herself. I find it whimsical. I wonder how folks consuming such art at that time might have received such free rendering? Curator: It certainly moves away from some of the more formal, academic depictions of the time. These depictions perhaps brought fresh life and movement into the more rigidly structured world and mindset from which such depictions sought release. Editor: I couldn’t agree more. I leave this image with a lightness and curiosity; imagining the chase, feeling the rough textures of a chilly climate and wondering about what that little deer might see over the rise of a far-away landscape! Curator: For me, understanding Tavenraat's "Hert" is understanding not just an image but an attitude towards resources and what artistic production can represent within a larger socio-political environment. It certainly highlights interesting ideas on this tour of animal depiction.