Schetsboekje met tekeningen 1887

Editor: We're looking at "Sketchbook with drawings" from 1887 by Pieter de Josselin de Jong. It's crafted with drawing and colored pencils on paper. The album has clearly aged; I'm wondering what kind of drawings are inside, and what purpose such sketchbooks played for artists at this time? What strikes you most about this particular object? Curator: What grabs me is the concept of the "album" itself, how the rise of albums, scrapbooks, and similar personal compendiums intersects with broader social and cultural shifts of the late 19th century. Who was in control of the images inside? Consider the growth of leisure time, increasing literacy, and new reproductive technologies, and then think of photography, travel souvenirs, and ephemera becoming readily available. It enabled people to construct and curate personal narratives. Editor: So you're saying the sketchbook isn't just a collection of drawings, but a kind of self-portrait? Curator: Precisely! In what ways does it function as a public display of identity, knowledge, and taste? Also, whose album was it? I see names and dates there - can these points contextualize the history or usage of the notebook? Consider who this artist was, his position, the circles he inhabited, and what such sketchbooks meant within that world. It wasn't purely for personal reflection but also circulation. Editor: That's fascinating! I'd always considered sketchbooks to be quite private. I never thought about its context so deeply. Curator: These albums served a purpose beyond just documentation. The seemingly private activity of sketching and collecting became another means for artists to negotiate social space. Art is a collective endeavour. Editor: I see what you mean, it gives me so much more to consider and adds so much to this unassuming notebook. Thank you for your time!