Schetsblad met studies van karpers 1876 - 1924

Curator: There's a quietness to this preliminary pencil sketch that I find immediately appealing. It almost feels meditative. Editor: Indeed. This is "Schetsblad met studies van karpers," or "Sheet with studies of carp," attributed to Gerrit Willem Dijsselhof. Although the creation dates are broad, we situate the artwork to between 1876 and 1924, created with pencil on paper. It currently resides at the Rijksmuseum. What do you think that these particular figures might have suggested to Dijsselhof? Curator: Well, the carp as a symbol is extraordinarily rich across cultures, particularly in East Asia. In Chinese culture, for instance, the carp represents perseverance, strength, and even success, stemming from the legend of carp swimming upstream to become dragons. Editor: Fascinating! It seems like there is also an acknowledgement of organic life here. And given Dijsselhof’s affinity with both realism and post-impressionism, is it possible the subject here is a formal exploration rather than symbolic? Perhaps the artist had in mind capturing motion through tonal control of a fluid subject, using shadow to indicate movement? Curator: I'm not so sure. Although formal artistic considerations are apparent, these stylistic associations still do exist within a certain cultural narrative. Perhaps there's something at play concerning water as life source and also its implications regarding colonialism and industrial development during that era, specifically water rights and resource extraction. It's about more than merely an organic figure floating in space; its historical ties and inherent meanings are being explored through a new, more contemporary critical lens. Editor: I see your point. Viewing through that lens adds greater depth. Regardless of the intentions, the drawings have this wonderful fluidity. Even incomplete, there's a captivating simplicity here, which transcends artistic movements, and perhaps alludes to deeper collective cultural meanings.