Portret van Patrick Bakker 1936

Curator: Here we have Lodewijk Schelfhout's "Portret van Patrick Bakker," a pencil drawing from 1936. It's currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first thought? Striking! There’s an almost melancholic beauty about this fellow. Is it a casual sketch, or something more? Curator: Schelfhout was exploring modernism and realism and how they inform each other, you know. I'd say this portrait pushes past a quick study. The subtle gradations achieved with just pencil are impressive. Think about the cost of materials—the graphite, the quality of the paper itself. Editor: Exactly, the material is really crucial to unpack. How readily available was quality paper, quality pencils? Not only do these factors shape the final product, they shape the type of people able to create art like this in the first place. The accessibility and, essentially, democracy, of the tools are pivotal to production! Curator: But isn't there something beyond the material itself? The way he captured Patrick's gaze... thoughtful, a touch distant? And the light! Notice the light, so delicate, catching the curve of his cheek. And what of Patrick Bakker himself? Who was he? What were their social dynamics like to begin with? I like imagining it now… Editor: We know from the inscription, and other pieces created at this time, that Schelfhout carefully chooses and controls his medium. We see his intent through this precision, and in terms of social relations, perhaps even dominance. Who could afford portraits like this then, and how were they traded and circulated? These sketches are currency as much as affection! Curator: Maybe... I just see a man capturing the essence of another, playing with light and shadow, lines dancing on the page... To create a likeness that whispers more than it shouts. Editor: I suppose the whispers of artistic expression only reverberate thanks to the paper it's on, right? Both are part of the same story. The portrait as a record of materials and social realities, alongside artistic sensitivity! Curator: Right, perhaps they're inseparable—the materials undergird the sensitivity that speaks from this handsome Patrick Bakker.