Notities en schetsen 1787 - 1808

Editor: We’re looking at “Notities en schetsen,” or “Notes and Sketches,” a drawing made with ink on paper between 1787 and 1808 by Jan Brandes. It feels very immediate and personal, like looking at someone's private thoughts. The blend of text and tiny landscape sketches is intriguing. What can you tell me about it? Curator: This work offers us a direct connection to the intellectual landscape of its time. Jan Brandes was operating within the era of Neoclassicism, but what do we see here beyond the aesthetic? Consider the act of note-taking itself, especially these inscriptions with calligraphic elements that look almost like secrets. How might these notes – perhaps related to calculations or observations, coexisting with landscape sketches – challenge or complicate traditional narratives of that era? Editor: I see what you mean. It isn’t just about formal beauty, it shows his mind at work. The blending of languages also feels very pointed. Is that Latin I spy? Curator: Indeed! And its intersection with other vernacular languages spoken and written by Brandes opens up the conversation to linguistic power structures during this colonial moment. Jan Brandes traveled extensively throughout the Dutch East Indies. What can we extract about colonialism and trade by examining this artwork? Editor: So the notes and the sketches could represent a way of processing his experiences in a new environment, of trying to quantify or categorize what he was seeing and learning. Curator: Precisely! And think about what it means to document through drawing and writing versus relying solely on textual accounts filtered through a colonial lens. This allows a layered experience to dissect the power structures, while acknowledging the human experience. Editor: I hadn’t thought of it that way. Looking at the image now, I see how Brandes might be trying to negotiate his place in that historical context through this work. Curator: It's about reading beyond the surface, isn't it? Asking ourselves whose stories are being told, and whose are being omitted, or translated in specific directions. Editor: Definitely gives a lot more to think about, beyond just its aesthetic value. I appreciate the nuanced view into Brandes’ cultural surroundings.