Højskoleforstanderinde Caroline Knudsen 1890 - 1891

Editor: This is a portrait of Højsskoleforstanderinde Caroline Knudsen, painted in 1890-1891 by Poul S. Christiansen, using oil paint on canvas. The painting's starkness, almost monochrome, feels quite severe. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: Well, consider the materiality first. Oil paint was becoming more widely available, allowing for greater detail and realism. This access to new materials changed the kind of artwork being made. We should consider who had access to these materials and methods at this time, and also whose labour went into canvas production and paint preparation. Editor: That’s a side of art history I don’t always think about. So you're suggesting that even something like oil paint itself shaped the art? Curator: Precisely. And note how the subject, Caroline Knudsen, a head of a folk high school, is presented. It's not just a depiction of her; it’s about her societal role, right? Editor: It's definitely a formal portrait. But what do you mean by societal role? Curator: High schools played a vital role in national identity at this time, promoting folk culture and craft, in some ways responding to industrial production. This image may therefore offer us an important material statement, contrasting itself against the mass-produced images becoming more prevalent at the time. Editor: I hadn't considered it in that light. It gives the image so much more context and meaning to think of all those opposing pressures. Curator: Exactly! So much can be gained through looking at process, the materials themselves and social context. Editor: This has given me so much to think about in approaching art, and indeed this artwork! Thank you.