Man zittend op een kruk of gekapte boomstam 1865 - 1913

Curator: Today, we’re observing a pencil drawing titled "Man sitting on a stool or a chopped tree trunk," which dates from between 1865 and 1913, currently held at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first thought is one of quiet contemplation. The way the artist uses shadow gives the piece a kind of somber, internal mood, almost as if we're looking in on a private moment. Curator: The technique certainly lends itself to that impression. The density of the pencil work indicates considerable time spent rendering the textures of fabric and the figure’s pose. What strikes me is the contrast between the roughness of the presumed tree trunk and the clearly individualized clothing. What do you think this says? Editor: For me, the stool or stump, signifies a connection to nature, and possibly to more primitive or grounded ways of life, while his clothing suggests a level of societal standing. There may be some commentary on humanity's place within nature. Perhaps something is meant to represent a merging between the everyday or work life with inner experience. Curator: Yes, and that's intriguing because this was a time of enormous social and economic transformation with the rise of factories and modern cities. A “return to nature” was a pretty popular concept. I see the materiality of the drawing, just a simple pencil on paper, also feeding into that trope, a directness that mirrors the return to simpler things. It feels intentional, particularly since this image comes down to us as a loose page. Editor: I think I agree about this mirroring of the artistic rendering. We see the result as something not fussy, unvarnished, simple, much as one might hope the depicted person’s mind may also be. This pose itself feels very natural and unstrained, no forced or obvious symbolism. But this doesn't negate how the cultural ideas can seep into the scene, I suspect, influencing the very notion of what "simple" even looks like. Curator: Very true, and those prevailing cultural ideals inform artistic labor and its various products. We could discuss who exactly was buying this kind of "simple" scene, or even making it... But let's just say this opens some very thought-provoking lines of inquiry. Editor: Absolutely. It’s an understated yet resonant image. A picture of a person made from only pencil evokes questions of place and time, and asks who we are even in relation to ourselves. Curator: Well said, let’s leave our listeners to contemplate these thoughts and the image further.