Studieblad med dyr. 1896

Editor: Here we have "Studieblad med dyr.", a page of animal studies by Agnes Lunn, created in 1896 using pencil. There's a gentle, almost dreamlike quality to it... What captures your imagination in this drawing? Curator: Oh, I'm immediately transported! It's like stumbling upon Lunn’s personal sketchbook, a backstage pass to her creative process. It reminds me of those old scientific illustration plates, yet softened, imbued with a kind of intimate observation. The various studies capture the animals in repose, revealing her tenderness toward the animal. Do you see the small child holding an umbrella? It evokes a feeling of melancholic solitude... Editor: Yes, it adds such a poignant note! Do you see a particular significance in her choice of animals or her realistic style? Curator: I see in Lunn's donkeys a reflection on domesticity. Lunn creates the realism that reflects the inner qualities of these animals. Perhaps these were the animals in Lunn’s rural world, a visual diary of her life. The loose, unfinished quality suggests an immediacy and a vulnerability – a raw glimpse into her world. And this work, with the various pencil textures, manages to be simultaneously observational and emotionally expressive... Editor: It’s lovely how something that seems so simple on the surface reveals so many layers the more you look. Curator: Precisely! And it makes you wonder: What other secrets are hiding within these seemingly quiet drawings? And how can we learn to see the world around us with such observant wonder?