Staande, zittende en liggende dromedarissen 1858 - 1860

Editor: Here we have Willem de Famars Testas' "Standing, Sitting, and Lying Dromedaries," a pencil drawing from the late 1850s. It feels like a glimpse into the artist's sketchbook, very raw and observational. What captures your attention when you look at this work? Curator: What intrigues me is the labor involved in producing this image. Consider the physical act of drawing these camels, the time spent observing them. This isn't just about depicting animals; it's about the artist's engagement with the means of representation itself, pencil on paper, a direct trace of his hand. What paper and pencils were available at that time, and what do their materiality tell us about art production in the mid-19th century? Editor: So you're thinking about the availability and the quality of the materials shaping the drawing. Did the limitations influence his style? Curator: Absolutely. The sketchiness, the unfinished quality – these aren't deficiencies. They're clues. They reveal the artist grappling with the inherent constraints of the medium, of turning three-dimensional form into two. And, crucially, how this reflects the socio-economic structures of artistic production. Who had access to camels to study? Whose labor enabled de Famars Testas to pursue this study? Editor: It’s interesting to think about those unseen hands that allowed this art to even be made. I hadn’t considered it like that. Curator: Consider the paper's tone. It’s not bright white, likely a less expensive stock. That impacts the work. A bright white would have created high contrast, thus a more dramatic presentation of the drawing. Think about the access to materials, production processes. Were these common types available at the time, or expensive, and difficult to obtain? That affects everything. Editor: I'm seeing it now! Thinking about it in terms of its materiality definitely makes me consider the layers behind the artwork. Thank you. Curator: Indeed, this opens an array of other interpretations. What could have seemed, at first glance, simply an amateur sketchbook drawing, unveils a connection to a broader socio-historical framework.