Kussend stel en drie vrouwenhoofden 1891 - 1941

Editor: We’re looking at “Kussend stel en drie vrouwenhoofden,” or “Kissing Couple and Three Women's Heads,” a pencil drawing on paper by Leo Gestel, dating sometime between 1891 and 1941. The tentative lines give the piece a very dreamlike quality. What strikes you most about Gestel's approach to this sketch? Curator: What intrigues me here is the apparent disposability of the sketch itself, the everyday nature of pencil on paper. It invites us to consider the labor involved. How many sheets did Gestel use? Was this a preparatory sketch, a discarded idea, or something deemed "finished?" Its "unfinished" status collapses distinctions between labor and final "art object". Editor: That’s interesting. So, you’re not focusing as much on the figures themselves, but more the creation and consumption of the art? Curator: Exactly. Note the casual, almost haphazard arrangement. Was the paper stock easily accessible, mass-produced? The means of production influence our interpretation. This is not a precious painting requiring expensive materials, but a readily available tool. Editor: I see your point about the materiality shifting our perspective. Looking at it as a readily available commodity, like the paper and pencil, cheapens the artwork itself, perhaps? Curator: It shifts the focus. We tend to valorize the "art object," divorcing it from the labor and materials that went into it. Focusing on materiality helps us challenge the traditional hierarchy between art and everyday life. Editor: I had never considered the relationship between production and consumption in such detail before, very helpful. Curator: Indeed, viewing art through a materialist lens encourages us to question the established art historical canons and appreciate the value and potential of everyday making.