Windmill at Sanssouci; verso: Figure and Head Studies 1872

Editor: Here we have John Singer Sargent's "Windmill at Sanssouci," a graphite drawing. The sketchiness makes it feel immediate, like a quick impression. What stands out to you? Curator: Notice how Sargent uses graphite to depict the industrial form of the windmill against the organic, almost unruly foliage. This tension highlights the relationship between human labor and the natural world. How does the drawing’s materiality, its very ‘sketchiness,’ speak to this relationship? Editor: I guess the quickness implies a fleeting moment, as if industry is only temporarily imposing itself on nature. I hadn’t considered the labor aspect until now. Curator: Exactly. Sargent's choice of a readily available material like graphite, and the rapid execution, suggest accessibility, democratizing the artistic process, even while depicting a structure symbolic of production. It makes you wonder about the social context of both the mill and the art itself. Editor: That’s a new way of seeing it for me. Thanks!