Studie af rygvendt mand siddende i en klapstol 1930 - 1936

This is Niels Larsen Stevns's sketch of a man in a folding chair. The rapid, crisscrossing lines define the figure and the chair he occupies, set against the stark white of the page. The strokes are raw and immediate which conveys a sense of fleeting observation, as if the artist were capturing a momentary pose. Stevns's lines work to create a sense of volume and depth, giving shape to the man's form and the chair's structure. The sketch is not just a depiction of a subject; it's an exploration of form through line. The sketch’s visual structure, in its simplicity, destabilizes the traditional portrait’s focus on identity, instead presenting a study of form and posture. The ambiguity of the man’s features further emphasizes this move away from traditional representation. This drawing then, invites us to consider how even the simplest sketch can challenge our assumptions about art and representation.