Vedby kors 1843

Curator: It strikes me as a rather stark image, almost unsettling, despite its humble subject. Editor: Indeed. What we're looking at is "Vedby kors" from 1843, a woodcut by H.C. Henneberg. It resides here at the SMK, the Statens Museum for Kunst. It appears to be a simple rural scene. Curator: The cross definitely dominates the foreground, doesn't it? And it isn’t necessarily presented as something comforting. Instead, it feels abandoned, a bit dilapidated perhaps, left behind. It stirs feelings related to the uncanny. It sits just so, amongst this dilapidated fence and wild field with looming hills in the background. Editor: The choice of realism is fascinating here, as it strips away any romantic idealization that might typically be associated with religious symbols or the rural landscape. It mirrors socio-political movements within religious thinking in the 19th century. We are confronted with the actual, lived experience of faith. Curator: I wonder what the cross itself signified at the time. A boundary marker, a symbol of faith rooted in the land? Editor: The use of a common wooden cross rather than an ornate one reinforces this sense of groundedness, an authenticity. And consider how a humble material like a woodcut print further emphasizes the accessibility, the almost democratic nature, of this visual language. Curator: You know, seeing it in that light gives it a deeper resonance. The cross, weathered and leaning, can be interpreted as the faith of the common person, enduring despite hardship, subtly defiant, even in its imperfect presentation. Editor: Exactly. Its message is more radical than a surface viewing reveals. By refusing idealized imagery, Henneberg makes space for a more potent kind of connection between the individual and the spiritual world, through an awareness of nature. Thank you for walking us through the uncanny yet socially grounded experience of faith that this work may trigger in audiences. Curator: Thank you for the sociopolitical and institutional history which opens it all up for a renewed experience.