Kompositionsskitser til maleriet af generalkonsul Johan Christian Pingles døtre i en have: Forneden på bladet er skitseret nogle mindre børn 1792 - 1794

Jens Juel made this sketch in preparation for a painting of the daughters of Johan Christian Pingle, a Danish general consul. Executed in sanguine chalk, the study offers a glimpse into the world of portraiture in late 18th-century Denmark, where artists navigated the expectations of wealthy patrons. We see Juel working out the composition of his painting. The format of the sketch is informal, but the final painting, now lost, would have presented the Pingle sisters in a more polished manner suitable for public display. Denmark at this time was a highly stratified society, and portraiture was a way for the elite to assert their status. While Juel was a popular and successful artist, we can think of his art as embedded in these social and institutional structures. The meticulous work of art historians enables us to reconstruct the artistic and cultural contexts that gave meaning to Juel’s work. By consulting letters, exhibition catalogs, and other primary sources, we are better able to understand the complex relationships between artists, patrons, and the public in 18th-century Denmark.