Skitser til reliefferne på Hjørring centralbibliotek 1930 - 1938

Editor: Here we have Niels Larsen Stevns' "Skitser til reliefferne på Hjørring centralbibliotek," created between 1930 and 1938, using pencil on paper. It’s currently held at the SMK. These initial sketches have a rough, almost urgent energy, but what is its symbolic message? Curator: Niels Larsen Stevns appears to be delving into the core of human toil here. Notice how the lines depict a figure bowed forward, possibly under a great weight or burden? Is that a circular shape that might be an orb? It speaks to me of physical labor and perhaps broader societal strains during that era. The library context then offers new interpretations of wisdom, shared burden, knowledge sought and embodied through labour. Editor: That's fascinating! The circular shape, the orb, it looks both weighty and maybe luminous… What feelings did Stevns try to convey? Curator: Perhaps Niels Larsen Stevns intends to remind us that all progress, whether intellectual or societal, stems from labor and the constant turning of the wheel, illuminated by knowledge. The symbolism is really open to individual reading, coloured by experiences and background. What’s your own visceral reaction? Editor: It feels stark. This work asks you to meditate on this connection between our ancestors, the books, the people… Thanks! Curator: It also speaks to how visual shorthand and archetypal images—in art—serve to preserve societal memory and emotional intelligence through time, linking the present with layers of shared experiences. That has me reflecting about art and cultural memory now!