Skizzenbuch by Johann Erdmann Gottlieb Prestel

Skizzenbuch Possibly 1822 - 1823

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drawing, paper, ink

drawing

paper

ink

romanticism

Editor: Here we have Johann Erdmann Gottlieb Prestel's "Skizzenbuch," possibly created between 1822 and 1823. It seems to be a sketchbook made with ink on paper, and I must say, the marbled cover is unexpectedly captivating. It feels aged and well-used. What stands out to you about this object? Curator: It’s tempting to simply see this as a repository of artistic ideas. However, let’s consider the labor and materials involved. The paper itself – was it handmade? What was the source? The ink – what was its composition, how was it manufactured, and by whom? These are not passive materials; their production and consumption tell a story about the social and economic landscape of the time. Editor: That’s an interesting angle. I was immediately drawn to the aesthetic quality, but I see your point about looking deeper into its creation. The process of creating the ink, for example, probably involved skills and resources we often overlook. Curator: Precisely! Even the binding—its construction reflects a specific trade, a particular skill set. We might ask how readily available these sketchbooks were and to whom? Understanding the 'how' of its making can open avenues into grasping its significance within the broader culture of Romanticism. Did its relative affordability allow for a wider participation in artistic creation? Editor: I see now. So, instead of just focusing on the sketches inside, we're thinking about the sketchbook as an object representative of broader societal practices surrounding art making. I guess the very materiality is imbued with meaning! Curator: Exactly! It’s a challenge to the conventional focus on the "high art" contained within. Looking at the materials and the making reveals so much more about artistic practice and its place in the world. Editor: Well, I’ll definitely view sketchbooks differently from now on! It is so much more than just the contents of it. Curator: Yes, indeed! Examining art from a materialist perspective really enriches our appreciation and understanding.

Comments

stadelmuseum over 1 year ago

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Johann Erdmann Gottlieb Prestel, who became a renowned painter of soldiers, horses and hunting in the 1830s, obviously used this sketchbook at the beginning of his artistic career. According to the occasional dates, the drawings were made between 1821 and 1823, partly in and near Munich, where Prestel continued his studies, and partly in Tyrol. The first pages are mainly filled with studies of horses, which Prestel apparently drew at a military stud farm and observed closely, but still executed rather stiffly and with frequent use of an eraser (see the ‘eraser crumbs’ between the pages mentioned in the situation report). Some of the drawings may have been removed for later use. In the book’s second half, during a walk through Tyrol, the depictions of horses and riders give way to landscape views and figure studies, especially of men in traditional Tyrolean costumes. Not all drawings in the book are by Prestel; one page with profile portraits bears the signatures of fellow artists ‒ the painter Schäffer, who has not yet been identified, and the Munich portrait painter Joseph Bernhardt (1805‒1885), who also made the drawing of a forester from Schwaz in this sketchbook.For a full sketchbook description, please see “Research”.