Regnskab 1846 1846

This is a page from Martinus Rørbye's account book from 1846, held at the Statens Museum for Kunst. At first glance, one is struck by the contrast between the cream-colored paper and the dark ink, creating a visual rhythm across the page. The composition is structured by the columns of text and numbers, which impose a rational order on the handwritten entries. Rørbye's script, with its loops and flourishes, brings an organic quality to this system, revealing the hand of the artist within the formal structure of accounting. The use of line is crucial, as it forms both the letters and the ruled lines that organize the data. This interplay between the rigidity of the grid and the fluidity of the handwriting introduces a subtle tension, destabilizing any fixed notion of order or record-keeping. Rørbye's account book thus challenges our expectations of what constitutes art, inviting us to consider the aesthetic potential of everyday objects.