Bomen 1848 - 1888

Editor: This is "Bomen," or "Trees," a graphite drawing on paper by Anton Mauve, sometime between 1848 and 1888. It’s a pretty unassuming sketch. It feels more like a collection of scribbles than a fully formed artwork. What do you see in this piece? Curator: Well, precisely that 'unassuming' quality you mentioned speaks volumes about its historical moment. During Mauve's time, there was an increasing interest in representing 'raw' nature. He's working within the Impressionist movement, but unlike the landscapes painted for bourgeois display, this is more like a working sketch – a document of observation. Editor: A document? Curator: Yes, consider who gets to document, and what is worthy of documentation. This sketch flattens social hierarchies present in painting, as it seems like preparation. Instead of some sublime landscape that confirms man’s dominance over nature, this image acknowledges the everyday encounters an artist has with nature and its impact on culture. Do you notice how informal it is? Editor: I do now. There are a lot of chaotic marks. Curator: It is a chaotic but calculated array of lines meant to communicate movement and form. These quick graphite markings embody the immediacy of perception; however, consider the labor it took to get to that stage and how academic conventions play a role in creating these rapid drawings. Does knowing that it now resides in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, and is thus presented as a cultural artifact, change how you feel about it being a sketch? Editor: That definitely makes me think differently about it. The setting definitely reframes how I view his choices and what’s considered display-worthy. Thanks for that. Curator: And thank you. Reflecting on art institutions has made me more cognizant of how our understanding is constantly shaped by display culture.