Zonnebloem 1919

Curator: Here we have Julie de Graag's 'Zonnebloem', or Sunflower, a relief print and woodcut piece dating from 1919. What are your first thoughts? Editor: It feels simultaneously raw and deeply considered. The monochromatic palette makes me focus on the texture and the labor, all those carved lines to create this field of energy radiating from a heavy, almost mournful sunflower. Curator: Exactly. There's a weightiness to it. Sunflowers are so often depicted as these bright, joyful symbols. Here, de Graag gives us a more somber perspective. Do you think the print medium emphasizes this feeling in any way? Editor: Absolutely. Relief printing, particularly woodcut, demands a very physical interaction. You have to carve away material to reveal the image. This act of removal and reduction really highlights the manual labour inherent in artistic creation, and for this piece specifically, the way the texture has been enhanced allows the labour to be focal point in addition to its aesthetics. Curator: I like how you describe that, 'act of removal'. De Graag was working in a period of tremendous social upheaval, after all, fresh from World War I. Perhaps this artwork reflects a feeling of loss or a turning away from conventional, prettified beauty, choosing instead to engage with the real world, with work. Editor: It is fascinating how the medium carries meaning here. She chooses something associated with craft, mass production even, and elevates it into something unique and artistically vital. How each line holds both purpose and feeling in balance. Curator: And don't forget the inherent intimacy within its design. It pulls the viewer closer. What begins as an imposing single flower slowly blooms into a field of nuanced emotions. In this one flower you get this whole perspective shift! Editor: De Graag challenges us to see beauty in the mundane, perhaps, or to recognize the work—both artistic and agricultural—behind even the simplest things. I find it refreshing! Curator: Yes, the intersection of the industrial, handmade, and the natural world—quite compelling, really. Editor: I concur. A deeply affecting exploration of nature, production and spirit contained within this humble print.