Skuespilleren Frederik Schwarz 1760 - 1802

Jens Juel painted this portrait of Frederik Schwarz with oil on canvas. Oil paint is interesting in that it allows for slow, deliberate work. Juel likely built up the image in layers, glazing thin coats of pigment, to model the actor’s face, and capture the sheen of his silk waistcoat. Schwarz is portrayed in a moment of study. His engagement with the written word speaks to the rising status of actors in the late eighteenth century. Juel’s careful rendering of fabric reflects an economy increasingly based on consumer goods. Consider the labour that went into producing Schwarz’s clothing: the shearing of sheep, the spinning of wool, the weaving of cloth, the cutting and sewing, all done by hand. Seen in this light, portraiture can be understood as a celebration of craft, labor, and commerce, as much as individual achievement. It reminds us not to separate ‘fine art’ from the larger world of making.