Luise Scholderer sleeping 2 - 1887

Curator: Otto Scholderer created this evocative drawing, titled "Luise Scholderer Sleeping," in 1887. It currently resides here at the Städel Museum. Editor: It looks so gentle, doesn't it? The lines are soft, like she's wrapped in a cloud. A real sense of peace. Curator: It's amazing what he achieves with so little – looks like primarily pencil and perhaps a touch of pastel. Note the way he uses hatching to define the planes of her face and the subtle shadows around her mouth. He also dated the piece. It suggests a snapshot of an intimate moment, perhaps within a sketchbook. Editor: The support, likely laid paper, is as crucial to this piece as the mark-making. The texture almost seems to breathe life into the sketch, adding to that dreamy effect. It makes me wonder about the quality of paper readily available, where this paper was produced, who was making it… Curator: It definitely gives a glimpse into their world, a moment stolen from domestic life. Knowing this is a sketch of his wife adds to the feeling of intimacy, almost as if we are intruding on something private. But he seems almost reverential in the way he captures her. Editor: Reverential and efficient, perhaps? I wonder how many of these he produced, if this was practice, or just another saleable commodity. Was sketching acceptable artistic "labor" at the time, or seen as lesser work for quick sales, I wonder? Curator: A poignant question! It invites us to contemplate how artists like Scholderer straddled the line between personal expression and professional practice. As for her part, to me the softness of her closed eyes…It whispers secrets of vulnerability and repose. Editor: I like that, that she seems unburdened, untouched by the potential toil implicit in the act of representing. Still, for all that the drawing conveys of his feelings and talents, I think the materiality of the art remains at its heart. Curator: Agreed. This work beautifully demonstrates that even the most commonplace materials can translate the most deeply felt emotions. Editor: Leaving us with more questions than answers about artistic and familial labor. Curator: A beautiful paradox of a deceptively simple image!