Illustrationsddkast til H.C. Andersen, Snemanden 1866 - 1870

This pencil drawing is an illustration for Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale The Snowman, by the Danish artist Lorenz Frølich. The loose sketch shows a group of figures, some of whom seem to be musicians, gathered around a snowman. Given that Frølich made this in the 19th century, it's worth remembering the role that illustrations played at that time. Illustrations were how most people experienced stories. They were a means of communicating literature and culture to a broad public. Also, the tradition of illustrating fairytales speaks to the growing importance of childhood as a distinct phase of life that needed to be celebrated and protected. To understand Frølich's drawing fully, one can consult not only the original text by Andersen but also studies on 19th-century Danish culture and the history of book illustration.