IJsvermaak op een stadsgracht bij een molen 1774 - 1833

Editor: This is Jacob Smies's "IJsvermaak op een stadsgracht bij een molen," or "Ice Skating on a City Canal by a Mill" done sometime between 1774 and 1833. It's a drawing in ink on paper. The scene feels so full of energy, almost chaotic, despite the limited color palette. What compositional elements strike you most when you look at this work? Curator: Immediately, the asymmetry is apparent. The stark tree branches on the upper portion oppose the implied activity below, creating a formal tension. Consider how the artist deploys the structural device of the horizon line. Editor: How so? Curator: The buildings and the suggestion of the windmill are relegated to a background role and are positioned to one side, yet define much of the top line of the horizon and a feeling of spaciousness, but not of balance. Moreover, Smies’s deployment of ink tonalities gives a somewhat agitated effect, perhaps reflective of the joyful exuberance in the human activity. What are your views on his deployment of representational space? Editor: It is interesting how the characters at the forefront have greater scale and a greater definition to their forms. Whereas, towards the background, the human figures become far less detailed, as you say, pushing them more into the background. This really heightens that sensation of space in the composition. I suppose I was focusing so much on the immediate, anecdotal image and what the scene might tell us about Dutch life. Thank you for focusing my eye on the more formal qualities of Smies’s work! Curator: Indeed. The apparent simplicity initially belies a network of highly developed artistic gestures and decisions.