Tidstavle over de faraonske dynastier i Ægypten 1933 - 1934

Niels Larsen Stevns made this drawing of Egyptian dynasties using graphite on paper. I imagine Stevns bent over his sketchbook, brow furrowed in concentration as he transcribed these ancient timelines. I see him grappling with the enormity of history, trying to make sense of the dynasties. The handwriting is fascinating – looping and leaning, pressing hard in places, then fading out like a breath. It reminds me of Cy Twombly's scribbled canvases, or even Leonardo’s notebooks - that urge to capture everything, to map out the world through language and image. It’s as if the simple act of writing becomes a way of possessing and understanding a subject. Stevns was part of a community of artists who looked to the past for inspiration, reinterpreting history through a modern lens. And it is a process of translation – from hieroglyphs to handwriting, from ancient power to a personal meditation on time and memory.