Junges Mädchen im Profil (_Rotkäppchen_) c. 1895

Curator: Welcome. We're standing before Otto Scholderer's "Junges Mädchen im Profil (_Rotkäppchen_)," created around 1895. It's a pencil drawing on paper. Editor: It has a quietness to it. Almost like a memory captured in fleeting lines. The subject's gaze is very demure. Curator: Precisely. Note how Scholderer employs delicate pencil strokes to delineate the form of the young girl. There’s a deliberate softness to the lines, characteristic of impressionistic portraiture. Observe the hatching that models her face and hood, giving dimension while maintaining an ethereal quality. Editor: That reminds me how laborious pencil drawings can be. Imagine Scholderer's choices: the type of pencil, the grade of paper, and the decisions of pressure, layering, and erasure! The making of this delicate image was materially demanding. I would speculate this preliminary work assisted Scholderer later when painting oils on canvas. Curator: A compelling material insight! Returning to the formal composition, the profile view encourages a reading of restraint and introspection. The subject’s averted gaze resists direct engagement with the viewer. This distances us from the interiority of the subject and directs our attention toward formal pictorial space. Editor: I find myself thinking about childhood labor conditions at the end of the nineteenth century. Her garb doesn't suggest privilege or comfort, it evokes, to my eyes, working-class constraints and sacrifices. What story could the production of her clothes, and possibly the production of Scholderer’s materials tell? Curator: It’s tempting to see in the ‘Rotkäppchen’ of the title a symbolic rendering of vulnerability and perhaps innocence navigating difficult circumstances, thematically alluding to cultural constructions surrounding childhood. Editor: Examining art through production offers opportunities to scrutinize power dynamics related to resources and craftsmanship in addition to aesthetics. Curator: Indeed, our appreciation of Scholderer's work is enriched when viewed through the lenses of formal structure and tangible material conditions, each offering invaluable perspective. Editor: Thank you for providing formal expertise, revealing those delicate qualities of the medium and subject; considering material conditions has given me a fuller perspective.