Luise Scholderer sitzend, mit aufgestütztem Kopf 11 - 1871

Curator: This is Otto Scholderer's pencil drawing, "Luise Scholderer sitting, with her head propped up," completed in August 1871. It resides here at the Städel Museum. Editor: Immediately, the sketch gives a feeling of melancholy, wouldn’t you say? The pose, with her face obscured... there's a weight to it. Curator: It's intimate, raw. Scholderer captures a private moment, almost voyeuristic. Notice the economy of line; he’s conveying so much with so little. Look at how the fabric drapes; he clearly understood its materiality, its weight and fall. Editor: Absolutely, you can almost feel the weight of the paper, and then of her dress—I'm intrigued by his choice to primarily render this subject matter by means of line, instead of focusing more intently on the qualities of the paper. We can also note the implications of this sketch having been developed in the moment--it privileges certain modes of spontaneous work. Curator: Do you think the ephemeral nature of the medium speaks to a particular kind of intimacy with his sitter? There's a vulnerability here, hers, certainly, but also the artist's in revealing a moment not meant for public consumption. The hand veiling her face gives it such mystery and intrigue! Editor: I agree! It really underscores how seemingly mundane objects and gestures in portraiture—the very pencil strokes—can encode social values or even intimate dramas that would be illegible otherwise. Curator: A window into a past emotion, distilled into graphite on paper. I leave it ruminating on what may be motivating such melancholic intimacy. Editor: It prompts us to reconsider our perceptions, reminding us of how the interplay between object and its representations reflects power. It has certainly changed how I will appreciate Scholderer's approach now.