Bladerdek van een boom c. 1765 - 1775

Jean-Honoré Fragonard made this drawing of a treetop with graphite on paper. Fragonard uses the qualities of graphite – its subtlety, its capacity for shading, and its association with sketching and preparation – to capture the shifting play of light and shadow within the canopy. The drawing consists of layers of hatching and cross-hatching, building up a sense of volume and depth, and an overall impression of the form of the tree. What is interesting about this work is that it appears in a sketchbook. It is a humble object, and we should not overlook the economic and social implications of the sketch. Its production reflects a direct engagement with the landscape, and a certain kind of labor: the artist's patient observation and translation of natural forms into graphic marks. It invites us to consider the value of everyday mark-making, challenging our conventional notions of art as exclusively existing in the realm of finished, polished works.