Staand paard, van voren 1816

Editor: Here we have Jean Bernard's "Standing Horse, from the Front", made in 1816 using pencil. There's something so immediate about this drawing. It feels like a fleeting glimpse, captured directly from life, almost like a sketch from a personal sketchbook. What captures your attention most about this simple sketch? Curator: Oh, that's a good way to put it - immediate, definitely! I’m drawn to the delicate balance between the defined and the suggested. The artist clearly understood equine anatomy, suggesting muscles with such spare lines. See how the forelegs just fade into wisps of shadow near the bottom of the paper? The rest of it seems to exist only because of our imagination - perhaps we fill in the details as if we remember the moment together, you and I, and maybe even the artist, don't you think? Editor: I see what you mean about suggestion and definition working together. It gives the piece a sense of motion despite being a static pose. I find it interesting that you compare the experience of looking at this artwork with the exercise of sharing and shaping memories - can you talk about that some more? Curator: Well, consider it this way: a complete picture, filled with hyper-detail, leaves little room for us, the viewers. It tells us everything. A work like this, however, it invites us into the arena, asking us to collaborate. It stirs our recollections of seeing a horse standing in a field, the way the light might have touched it, its personality and stature. This isn't just a horse; it’s an *impression* of a horse, isn’t it? Almost a portal to the experience of a horse. Editor: That’s a lovely thought. It feels less like a study of an animal, and more of an invitation. I'll remember that. Curator: Wonderful.