Kystlandskab 1839

Dankvart Dreyer made this landscape study with graphite on paper. It is not exactly a precious medium, and we might assume it was a preliminary study for a painting. But consider how the seeming ‘lightness’ of the material has everything to do with the image’s atmospheric effect. Graphite is heavy stuff, it is a form of carbon, after all. But Dreyer coaxes it into a pale evocation of a Danish coastal scene. The application of the material is crucial here. The artist likely used the graphite in pencil form, and in powdered form, to create such a range of tones. It is easy to overlook drawings like these. But they stand as testament to the deep knowledge that artists have of their materials. They make the seemingly impossible, possible.