Tidstavle over H.C. Andersens liv 1875-1867 1930 - 1938

This is a page from "Tidstavle over H.C. Andersens liv 1875-1867" by Niels Larsen Stevns. It’s a pale spread, a notebook page filled with handwriting, where the artist seems to be mapping time itself. I can almost see him there, hunched over this book, pen in hand, the nib scratching away as he tries to pin down the slippery eel of time. I wonder what it was like for him to create this? Was it a form of devotion, a way of understanding the life of someone he admired? Or was it more like a puzzle, trying to fit all the pieces together? The handwriting itself is so delicate, like a spider web spun across the page. I notice how the lines curve and dance, each stroke carrying a little piece of the artist's own energy. This reminds me of On Kawara, whose date paintings similarly tracked the passage of time. It’s like Larsen Stevns is in conversation with him across time. Artists are always in an ongoing exchange, inspiring one another's creativity. It's a messy, beautiful, and ultimately human endeavor, isn't it?