IJsschots en een reisverslag van medio juni 1880 Possibly 1880 - 1886

Curator: Let's discuss this drawing by Louis Apol, titled "IJsschots en een reisverslag van medio juni 1880," or "Ice Floe and Travel Notes from mid-June 1880." It appears to have been executed sometime between 1880 and 1886. Editor: It strikes me immediately as incredibly intimate. The scale feels diminutive, and the stark simplicity of the graphite on paper evokes a personal connection to the scene. It is such a vulnerable scene. Curator: Indeed. Note how the artist has chosen a very economical means: pencil on what looks like a page torn from a sketchbook. The subtle tonal variations in the ice floe, achieved with such simple materials, really gives it weight. And note the careful observation of light and shadow. Editor: It does suggest a utilitarian impulse; a practical approach. One might even suggest that this isn't so much a presentation of an object but, in its rendering, becomes evidence of labor or study? The act of observing, recording and then the trace left. Curator: An interesting point. We see the artist at work, both documenting his experiences and perhaps experimenting with the rendering of form and texture. This idea extends from Realism while gesturing towards Symbolism too. Editor: It pushes us to consider who had access to such landscapes and to this particular means of visual documentation in the 1880's. Was this travel journal and these raw observations a luxury accessible only to the elite, thus imbuing even an innocuous sketch with social context? Curator: Undoubtedly, social strata dictates access and production here. This sketch provides glimpses into Apol's working process, capturing the fleeting impressions from the journey and illustrating both art, capital and travel in the late 19th century. Editor: The intimacy of this little page allows us to examine an intersection of means, marks and material to reflect the access given to and taken by artists of that time. It really brings out something compelling. Curator: Yes, looking at this sketch through this lens offers a fuller appreciation of both the formal choices made by the artist and also broader ideas of access and material consumption that remain present today.