Haas en twee koppen 1840 - 1870

Curator: Ah, a charming piece! We’re looking at “Hare and Two Heads” by Johannes Tavenraat, made sometime between 1840 and 1870. It's an ink drawing, currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: Immediately, I’m struck by the juxtaposition. A wizened, almost caricatured face beside the frantic energy of a fleeing hare. It feels…narrative, but without a clear story. Curator: Tavenraat was working within the Romanticism movement, though pieces like this show how he also explored genre painting with elements of figuration. The quick, loose strokes of ink tell us a lot about the making of the artwork; a raw glimpse into artistic creation. Do you see that it seems to be a page torn straight out of the artist's personal sketchbook, judging by the free style of the drawing and how efficiently ink renders the texture of form? Editor: Absolutely. The hare, for instance, isn't just a hare; it's a symbol of vulnerability, perhaps, or the fleeting nature of time itself, springing off of the page. The man, in contrast, looks weighed down, almost ancient. Consider how those contrasting elements come to mean more about temporality itself. Curator: His choice of medium is equally significant. The use of ink—an easily accessible, readily available material—signals artmaking not as a precious, high art activity, but a craft rooted in everyday life and ready use. Editor: I’m intrigued by the pairing itself. Hares often symbolize swiftness, wit, and even fear. The human face…it’s hard to say. Perhaps wisdom gained through age, or even a confrontation with mortality. Perhaps it even hints towards mortality in the fleeting nature of the rabbit which is shown. The relationship to that quick pace that rabbits go at. Curator: Exactly! Tavenraat manages to elevate this basic set of sketches into something potent through his method alone, and moreover suggests a great social commentary between what is viewed as beauty, which in this case, lies in simplicity. Editor: A brief yet fascinating dance of symbols and quick suggestive sketches that lingers in the mind. Curator: Precisely. It showcases how accessible materials combined with skill can offer profound meaning through images rooted in social contexts.