Plantestudie 1906 - 1910

Niels Larsen Stevns made this plant study with pencil on paper. I love sketchbooks, they show you the workings of the mind, the artist trying to figure out what they are seeing. Look closely at the way he renders the leaves. See the little, regular lines? It's almost meditative, like he's feeling his way through the form. The paper itself is so modest, worn at the edges, a little bit aged, which just adds to the intimacy. It's like we're looking over his shoulder as he's trying to capture the essence of these leaves. It reminds me of other artists, maybe Agnes Martin, in the repetition and the quietness. It’s this quiet, persistent investigation into form that art is all about, isn’t it? Not just to represent, but to really see.