Udkast til maleriet Faun og Nymfe 1940 - 1941

Editor: Here we have Edvard Weie’s pencil drawing "Udkast til maleriet Faun og Nymfe," from 1940-41. It feels very gestural, almost frantic, but I'm also drawn to the way the artist is exploring the possibilities within the constraints of simple materials. What stands out to you about it? Curator: Immediately, I think about the labor involved in producing this image, a seemingly quick sketch for what might have been a painting. We need to consider how the drawing, the act of sketching itself, functions as a vital stage of production. Weie isn't simply transferring an idea; he's working through it, materializing his thoughts using the basic, readily available resources around him. Editor: That makes sense. The raw, almost crude nature of the pencil marks becomes very apparent then. I almost didn't see it as a finished piece. Curator: Exactly. By looking at how the drawing was constructed through labor, through the pressure and movement of the pencil across paper, we appreciate the physicality inherent in artmaking. What relationship to the finished product do you believe it expresses? Editor: Hmm, I suppose it offers an almost unfiltered look at Weie's artistic process, revealing a social aspect tied to artmaking—not just as the realm of ‘genius’ but the material expression of labor and decision making. So it prompts us to value it not only aesthetically but as a historical record of artistic production? Curator: Precisely. Viewing the drawing as labor underscores its connection to the real world, moving past any aura surrounding fine art into something more tangible. Editor: That perspective reframes my whole appreciation of it. Seeing the material process makes it less about divine inspiration and more about human engagement. Curator: Absolutely. The materiality of art is fundamental to our experience, not just something aesthetic, but connected to larger economic and social forces.