Figuren bij een plattelandswoning tussen de bomen c. 1803 - 1818

Curator: Looking at this drawing, "Figuren bij een plattelandswoning tussen de bomen" (Figures at a rural house among the trees), created by Arnoldus Johannes Eymer between approximately 1803 and 1818, what is your immediate response? Editor: A raw energy, would be the words that come to mind. It has the fleeting quality of an idea being rapidly committed to paper, focusing on shapes and broad strokes of shading, all with an immediacy to it. Curator: Absolutely, that comes from its function as a preparatory pen and pencil sketch. Look closer: what stands out to you concerning how this “rural home” is presented within the composition? Editor: I'm drawn to how the building itself seems almost incidental, swallowed up within this density of marks; of different trees surrounding and obscuring it. It emphasizes the abundance of wood and material as a source. Curator: Yes, it appears as if nature is asserting itself. Note how Eymer positions the figures centrally, yet they almost disappear among the trees. The cottage, trees, and individuals are meant to evoke certain ideals of simple rustic living. This returns us to genre painting typical of the Romantic period: the land, in this case, offers not only practical utility, but is laden with deep, inherent values, all expressed visually by rendering it sublime. Editor: Sublime in its most literal state – it has a distinct rough-and-ready materiality which suggests that it has been hewn from whatever was on hand and with little refinement, yet sufficient. The cottage construction is a product of the surrounding resources and local skills. You can see the history etched onto the page, almost palimpsestic. Curator: And so a deeper meaning is expressed: simplicity is not only a way of life; but, also, living honestly, is possible in that space. Editor: Precisely – and the material history echoes throughout it all, grounding the entire notion. Curator: A fleeting glance turns into something more substantial once we think about materials. Editor: Indeed – a reminder that the world of things reflects cultural choices and history.