Prøveplade af en gammel skægget mand, vendt mod højre to gange 1865 - 1917

Editor: So, here we have a print titled "Prøveplade af en gammel skægget mand, vendt mod højre to gange," or "Trial Plate of an Old Bearded Man, Facing Right Twice," made sometime between 1865 and 1917 by Frans Schwartz. It's an etching, right? The dual portrait is quite striking, though the man looks rather weary, I must say. What strikes you most when you look at it? Curator: Weary is one word for it, isn't it? I see two studies in introspection, really. Schwartz has captured a depth of character in those etched lines, almost as if we are glimpsing a soul. The lines themselves, haven't you noticed, are restless, almost frantic. Is the man contemplating his life, perhaps facing mortality? Or simply a stiff neck? One never truly knows, does one? Editor: I like how you describe the lines as restless. Now that you mention it, they do seem to vibrate with energy, which counters the sitter’s…resignation. How does the 'trial plate' aspect influence your reading? Does knowing this was practice change your feelings toward the piece? Curator: Ah, a fine question! Knowing it’s a trial plate infuses it with a playful vulnerability, I think. It's as though we're witnessing the artist's process, seeing him wrestle with the subject, searching for the right angle, the right mood. It invites us to participate in that search, to complete the image in our own minds. Editor: That's a perspective I hadn't considered! Now I see the trial plate less as practice and more as an invitation. Curator: Precisely! The magic, my dear, lies in that invitation, in that collaborative dance between artist, artwork, and us.