Standing Woman c. 1910

Editor: This is Gustav Klimt's "Standing Woman," a pencil drawing from around 1910. It’s such a delicate rendering, almost ephemeral. What can you tell me about Klimt's process here? Curator: We need to look at this as the output of labor. Pencil drawings, like this, were essential to Klimt’s larger practice; the making of these ‘preparatory’ sketches aided in exploring compositions to be expanded upon in future, ‘more valuable’ material outputs like painting, allowing Klimt and his assistants the ability to experiment with pose, garment design, and, crucially, spatial construction on a small scale, freeing them from potentially expensive, larger-scale mistakes. What sort of paper do you think he’s using? Editor: It looks like a fairly thin, perhaps inexpensive stock. Does that mean these were considered disposable? Curator: Exactly! But their disposability does not negate their usefulness. Consider this from the perspective of the artist, Klimt, and his assistants: by producing several of these ‘quick’ and materially ‘inexpensive’ sketches in his Vienna studio, the possibility of financial loss decreased significantly. Klimt’s practice relied on the labour of others: how might that dynamic shape how Klimt valued sketching as a process? Editor: So, the sketch becomes an investment, of sorts – a cost-saving measure within his studio's larger economic practice? That is definitely not the read that comes to mind when just glancing at this beautiful drawing. Curator: Precisely. By examining the material reality of its production, the labor and material context, we get a far more nuanced understanding. Do we consider sketching art or a process that aids the making of art? Editor: I see what you mean! I hadn't considered the studio economics involved in what feels like such a personal, artistic expression. Curator: Understanding the economics and materials illuminates the art.