Paulus i Lystra 1623 - 1678

Curator: This expressive ink drawing is entitled "Paulus i Lystra" by Jürgen Ovens, believed to have been created sometime between 1623 and 1678. It’s currently held at the Statens Museum for Kunst. Editor: What a whirlwind! There's an incredible energy, almost chaotic, radiating from this pen sketch. It’s hard to put my finger on exactly what’s happening, but the dynamism is captivating. Curator: The drawing depicts a scene from the Acts of the Apostles, where Paul and Barnabas are mistaken for gods in Lystra. The people prepare to offer sacrifices to them. Editor: Gods, eh? With those horned figures carrying a decorated disk, you really get a pagan vibe, an intriguing departure from typical saintly portrayals. There’s something almost theatrical in the way those figures are positioned, too, frozen mid-gesture as they bring offerings to Paul. It feels... intentionally unsettling, or thought-provoking at least. Curator: Ovens really captures the fervor of the crowd, doesn't he? Note the bold lines that add a heightened emotional tension. It also guides the eye through the scene, leading it across gestures, figures, the offered gift... There are dramatic contrasts in lighting as well that reinforce a heightened atmosphere. Editor: Indeed! The artist's use of stark lighting enhances that chaotic theatricality and that sense of something extraordinary breaking loose. And the negative space also comes alive. Look at the almost frenetic scratches giving a dramatic texture of chaos... You can almost hear the shouting! It leaves space for our own emotional interpretation. Curator: The Baroque style really shines through, doesn't it? The exaggeration and energy really reflect the core tenants of this movement. The intention is not really to create a life-like record, but rather to communicate complex emotions with power. Editor: This pen sketch embodies this feeling in the perfect medium! It serves not to fully realize the emotion, but to merely evoke it in each viewer, isn’t it? You feel that with that incomplete linework: like it is about to erupt into its realization any second now. Well, I am personally moved. Curator: Yes, Ovens provides the frame and each viewer puts in the missing bits to it. I am sure he was trying to invoke more discussion than faith itself. Editor: Right! An intimate peek into the mind that birthed such feeling... So lovely.