Studies van zestien kippen 1865 - 1878

Jules Laurens created these studies of chickens using graphite, a humble material, on paper. Graphite, derived from carbon, has a wonderful range, from the hardest, sharpest line to the softest, most smudged tone. You can see Laurens making full use of these possibilities here. The hens are rendered with an astonishing range of light and dark, giving them a real sense of three-dimensionality. He has built up the forms through careful accumulation of strokes, giving the impression of feathers in all their diversity. This is draftsmanship at its finest, but it is also a glimpse into the agricultural economy of the time. Chickens are here recorded, not as noble creatures, but rather as specimens to be understood. In doing so, Laurens reminds us that even the simplest materials, like graphite and paper, can be used to capture the complexity of the world around us, and the systems of labor that sustain us.