Notities 1840 - 1841

Curator: Right, so here we have “Notities,” or "Notes" as it would be in English, a mixed-media drawing by Johannes Tavenraat, dating from 1840-1841. Looking at this closely, I'm really drawn to how immediate it feels, despite being almost two centuries old. Editor: I see what you mean. The layered texts and various handwritten notes seem very spontaneous and intimate, as if capturing a stream of consciousness on paper. What do you make of its function, beyond just being 'notes'? Curator: Well, its mixed-media nature, including paper, ink, and even textile fragments, suggests a personal archive. Maybe this was Tavenraat’s way of pinning down fleeting ideas, addresses, or impressions. I’d call it a kind of visual commonplace book. I wonder, do the random fragments of writing give you any hints of the artist's interests or perhaps a story they are telling? Editor: Yes, absolutely. I notice mentions of Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and even "Breda" scrawled among other hard-to-decipher phrases... I wonder if the mention of those places and the textile aspect of the artwork could indicate a travel itinerary, with snippets of fabric from different places he visited? Curator: A "textile map," as it were. I love that interpretation! The material adds a tactile, almost mnemonic quality to these jottings. And given his signature towards the bottom, it feels intentionally composed. Maybe less a spontaneous spill, and more an artful arrangement? Editor: Oh, that makes sense. I didn't consider it that way. It is amazing how something so simple and informal can trigger such creative interpretations and reveal so much about the artist and his time. Curator: Exactly. Isn’t it amazing how a simple drawing can invite us to time travel, not just through the facts it presents but through the atmosphere it evokes?