Blyantsstudie af hud der tørres 1847

Editor: This is "Blyantsstudie af hud der tørres," a pencil drawing from 1847 by Martinus Rørbye, housed at the SMK. It depicts what appears to be…animal skin drying on a line. I find the rawness quite striking. What do you see in it? Curator: It's fascinating how Rørbye captures the process of preservation. Think about the materiality: the pencil, the paper, representing skin itself. The work isn't just about the finished product, like fine leather, but the labor and resources needed to produce something from a raw material. Editor: So you are saying, it isn’t just about romantic landscape but about...economy, in some way? Curator: Precisely. The very act of rendering this with a pencil connects it to the larger economic context. Who prepared the skins? Who benefits from them? Editor: So it encourages us to think about consumption in the Romantic era. I suppose drying hides was much more central to life than it is now. Curator: Absolutely. Rørbye might be highlighting an important shift. It subtly gestures to questions around sustainability. Are resources being used thoughtfully? Are those tanning and using these skins being properly compensated for their labor? Editor: Wow, I had just noticed this piece as another landscape in pencil and paper! I’ll definitely think about the labor next time. Curator: Exactly. Looking at it through the lens of material production helps to really reveal something deeper than the surface level.