Skitser af traner og heste 1900 - 1905

This sheet of studies of cranes and horses was quickly sketched by Niels Larsen Stevns, we don’t know when. I can imagine Stevns in the field, rapidly and intuitively mapping out what he sees, trying to capture the animal’s essence with a bare minimum of marks. Look at that horse! The artist is feeling around for it, right? I know that feeling. Trying to capture something ephemeral, or something solid. Sometimes it feels like an impossible task. You can see how the various marks work together to give the impression of movement and form. Are the cranes moving? Is the horse breathing? The artist isn’t trying to make a perfect representation, but something more like an echo of life. It's amazing how much information and emotion can be conveyed with so little. It reminds me that artists are always learning from one another, building on the past, and finding new ways to express what it means to be alive.