Zittende vrouw met een trommel 1843 - 1847

Curator: Hendrik Abraham Klinkhamer’s sketch, dating from around 1843 to 1847, greets us—"Zittende vrouw met een trommel," or "Seated Woman with a Drum." A fleeting glimpse, captured with what looks like light pencil work. What springs to mind for you? Editor: Immediately, I'm drawn to its incompleteness. You see the ghost of forms, the quick hand of the artist trying to capture a fleeting pose. It screams sketchbook and working-class materiality: the cheapness of paper, the ready access to pencil lead… no grand gestures here. Curator: Precisely! It feels deeply personal, a peek into Klinkhamer’s artistic process. It feels as though we are witnessing Klinkhamer grappling with form and light in real-time. Editor: Well, the real-time aspect is debatable! What interests me, though, is the drum itself. Or rather, the implied drum. The way the artist renders fabric, for instance – the folds and gathers. It hints at a material reality for women's work, particularly with musical instruments. Was the woman paid? How were these drums sourced, constructed? The art itself is absent, suggesting layers of material production happening somewhere else, out of sight. Curator: That tension you pinpoint is fascinating! Klinkhamer's skill lies in intimating her presence so vividly with minimal strokes; her humanity echoes through the paper. But it’s more than that; it also captures this fleeting moment. This dance between what is, what was, and what could be…it has something. Editor: Yes, exactly. Those social histories embedded in a seemingly simple sketch. It’s about labour, it's about class, about the very real work of crafting art and music within particular social constraints, or… drum circles. Curator: So well put! It's a good reminder of the multi-layered narratives hiding just beneath the surface. Each scratch is a possibility. Editor: Exactly. A testament to art's deep connection to social materialities. A pencil, paper, a woman, and her instrument – far from innocent beginnings!