Skitser af får 1905 - 1907

Editor: So, this is "Skitser af får" by Niels Larsen Stevns, created sometime between 1905 and 1907. It’s a pencil drawing, fairly simple, with sketches of sheep on a gridded page. It’s interesting how the grid shows through the drawings; it almost feels like it's mapping out space for something else. What are your initial thoughts? Curator: What strikes me immediately is the artist's choice of materials: a humble pencil on what appears to be ordinary gridded paper, possibly from a notebook. Consider the labour involved— the repeated strokes, the artist's hand moving across this surface. Isn’t it fascinating how he’s elevating these everyday items into something of artistic value simply through observation and process? Where were such studies usually located within the academic system? Editor: Good question! They were generally exercises, means for more "important" work. Do you see it challenging the high art/craft divide in other ways? Curator: Absolutely. The grid itself hints at the mechanization and mass production inherent in paper manufacturing. But against this uniformity, Stevns offers individual, imperfect renderings of these animals. Note how they're positioned! He presents these common farm animals using his skill, challenging traditional subjects expected in “high art,” pointing to a society rapidly industrializing and reevaluating its relationship with labor and rural life. What kind of role did he see for himself in relation to the subject he depicted and the techniques he employed? Editor: That's a great way to look at it; I hadn't considered the industrial connection through the paper itself. I'll definitely keep materiality and process more in mind. Thanks! Curator: Indeed. The inherent value and cultural capital assigned to the work are as present in the physical properties as it is within its formal qualities.