Blank side 1833

This is a blank page from a sketchbook by Martinus Rørbye, a Danish artist working in the first half of the 19th century. Sketchbooks like this one offer unique insights into the artistic process. They show us the day-to-day practice of the artist outside the pressures of the formal studio. The sketchbook was a common tool at the time for artists travelling and recording impressions of the world around them, particularly in sites of cultural or historical interest. Artists were increasingly encouraged to directly engage with the world. To see and experience it for themselves rather than simply copying established conventions. Rørbye was a key figure of the Danish Golden Age. His sketchbooks demonstrate the shifting social and institutional conditions that shaped artistic production. Analyzing his sketches alongside his finished paintings, and comparing his work with that of his contemporaries, can tell us a lot about his place in Danish art history. It can also tell us about the increasing professionalization of the artist in the 19th century.