Studier af træer og huse 1831 - 1852

Dankvart Dreyer made this pencil drawing of trees and houses, sometime before his death in 1852. It's now held at the Statens Museum for Kunst. This sketch can tell us about the institutional role of the artist in mid-19th century Denmark. Dreyer's sparse lines record the landscape as a site for study. This was a period when the Danish art world was consolidating its national identity, finding inspiration in its local landscape. Dreyer's artistic education would have emphasized direct observation, training his eye to see the underlying structure of the natural world. His sketch would be the foundation for later studio paintings. What does it mean to see the world as a collection of forms to be studied? How does this influence the artist's relationship to nature and the rural population who lived there? To understand the role of the artist in Danish society at this time, historians examine official records from the Royal Academy, read artists' letters, and study how their work was received by critics in the press. This gives us insights into the social conditions that shaped the production of art in 19th century Denmark.