Dode uil 1775 - 1833

Editor: Here we have "Dode uil", or "Dead Owl", a pencil drawing made sometime between 1775 and 1833 by Jean Bernard. It’s currently housed at the Rijksmuseum. I find it so somber and strangely tender. What strikes you most about this piece? Curator: What whispers to me from this subdued sketch is a contemplation on mortality, softened by a naturalist’s eye. Barnard captures the quiet surrender in the owl's form. It’s less a spectacle of death, and more a study of rest – a feathered pause in life's grand ballet, if you will. What do you think about how this reflects our vision on animal in art? Editor: I hadn't thought about it as a 'rest'. So you’re saying the artist, by choosing this intimate depiction, elevates the owl beyond just a symbol of death, into something more... personal? Curator: Precisely! It feels almost like a gentle elegy, don’t you think? As if Bernard paused, sketchbook in hand, and allowed himself a moment of empathetic connection. Perhaps wondering on life's mysteries. It's easy to look at it as dead, but is it so death-like? Editor: That’s such a thoughtful way of framing it. The angle, the lighting...it really does invite you to see beyond the obvious. Curator: Absolutely. We so often view historical art through the lens of grand narratives. Yet here we stumble upon a fragile reminder: Even then, the small moments held just as much profundity, perhaps even more, capturing a single winged creature, quiet and still, speaking volumes about existence itself. Editor: I'll never look at a still life the same way. Thanks for offering a fresh perspective! Curator: And thank you for sharing this moment of quiet contemplation. Who knew an owl could teach us so much?