Vår I. To nøgne mænd, der planter et træ 1936 - 1937

Niels Larsen Stevns made this relief, Vår I. To nøgne mænd, der planter et træ, sometime in his life, we don't know exactly when. It's all about the surface here, isn't it? That dense, worked texture. You can almost feel the artist’s hands pressing into the clay. Each mark is like a little breath, a tiny decision made in the moment. Look how the figures emerge, those two naked men planting the tree, they are almost coming out of the ground itself. See how the light catches the high points, revealing the muscularity of their forms, and how it pools in the shadows, creating a sense of depth and mystery. That space where the men's legs meet the earth is so beautifully rendered, it feels like they are one and the same. It reminds me a little of Rodin, actually, that same commitment to raw, expressive materiality. But Stevns brings his own quiet intensity to the work, like a whispered secret. It’s less about grand gestures and more about those tiny moments of connection, between the artist, the material, and the world.