Leaf tree 

Friedrich Wilhelm Hirt made this leaf tree using pen and brown ink on paper. Here, Hirt uses sepia ink, derived from the ink sac of cuttlefish, and a reed or quill pen. The thinness of the lines suggests that the paper was sized, perhaps with gelatin or starch, to prevent the ink from bleeding. The effect is one of great precision. This is not just a study of nature, but an essay in craft. Consider Hirt’s labour, not just his vision. There is a huge amount of careful drawing here, a world away from the quick gestural sketching of the impressionists. The ink is carefully mixed, the pen meticulously plied. We sense the artist's disciplined attention as much as the tree itself. Paying attention to materials and making helps us understand the artist's careful and disciplined hand. By challenging the hierarchy between fine art and craft, we can fully appreciate the artistic and social significance of works like this.