Rejsedagbog 1845

Curator: Welcome to Rejsedagbog, a page from Johan Thomas Lundbye's travel journal dated 1845. The journal, composed of drawing and writing on paper, resides here at the SMK. Editor: There's an immediate intimacy about this. It feels like stumbling upon a personal moment, handwritten thoughts and sketches laid bare. Curator: Indeed. Lundbye, working within the Romantic tradition, was deeply engaged with nature and national identity. This journal offers a glimpse into his observations and reflections during his travels. Editor: What strikes me first is the directness of the writing; the labour involved in crafting each letter and the unedited stream of thought. Curator: Absolutely, this reflects the artistic and intellectual currents of the period. Lundbye, like many of his contemporaries, sought authenticity in nature and in expressing subjective experience. The handwritten text provides that immediate, unmediated access to his thoughts. He’s not simply recording, but engaging with, and internalising landscape and his place within the world. This fragment, I think, conveys both intellectual observations and visceral emotional response. Editor: You can sense that physicality in every word. The act of writing is right there on the page, the pressure of the pen, the flow of the ink and what that says about the conditions of making. How the elements and circumstance play a role. This isn't just about national identity and philosophical thought. The material here makes us question about his identity as an artist who makes records of this experience. Curator: An interesting perspective, particularly with its focus on the materiality of art and the socio-economic dynamics surrounding the artist. One can see this approach pushing traditional boundaries between artistic disciplines and shedding light on what this form says of its artistic labour and status. Editor: The intimacy here speaks volumes of process, revealing something very deep. It opens questions around what can be called “art”. Curator: Well, thinking about this work in terms of its intersectional contexts, alongside these discussions on the material conditions of its production, enriches our appreciation of Lundbye's process, the artwork, and the broader socio-historical forces that shaped it. Editor: Yes, the journey of this notebook – literally and figuratively – adds another compelling layer.