Prospekt af byen Altona 1835

Here is a drawing made by Louis Gurlitt, depicting a view of the city of Altona. It’s graphite on paper – traditional art materials, yes, but consider the context. Altona was a busy port city, part of Denmark at the time this drawing was made. Gurlitt has captured it with quick, light strokes, suggesting a place in constant motion. You can almost feel the activity of the harbor, the coming and going of ships, the movement of goods and people. The graphite itself is a material of trade; mined and processed, then applied to the paper in countless tiny gestures. Note how the artist has paid attention to the details of the architecture and the ships, capturing the essence of a thriving, bustling city. Drawing like this was a commercial skill, much in demand at the time. So, while this may seem like a simple sketch, it’s actually a window into the world of 19th-century labor, trade, and the exchange of artistic skills. It reminds us that even the most traditional art forms are deeply embedded in the social and economic realities of their time.