Studier af vildsvin 1864 - 1941

Niels Larsen Stevns made these "Studies of Wild Boar" with a pencil, in a sketchbook, and you can see the quiet beginnings of a drawing process. There's something so intimate about seeing an artist's sketchbook, like you're catching them in a moment of thought. The paper has a warmth, and the graphite lines are tentative, searching, almost like feeling around in the dark. You can almost imagine Stevns observing these animals, trying to capture their essence with just a few strokes. Look closely, and you can see the ghost of erased lines, the artist's hand adjusting, refining, unsure, yet steadily moving towards a clearer image. For me that single, bold line that defines the back of the lower boar is the key, it confidently anchors the form. It's a reminder that art isn't always about perfection, but about the journey of seeing and discovering, not unlike Picasso's animal sketches perhaps. This piece suggests that it's okay to be unfinished, to be in process, just like life itself.