Studier af næsebjørn 1864 - 1941

Niels Larsen Stevns made these light pencil sketches of a coati or ‘nose bear’ directly into a sketchbook, so we can tell he was out in the world, looking, recording. I know that feeling of wanting to just grab some impressions, to feel something of the thing through your hand. What was he thinking as he worked? Did he have time to stop and really observe the animal? Or was he just trying to capture the essence of it before it moved away? You can see him trying out different angles to show the animal’s snout. I love how the quick and loose marks still give you a sense of the animal's character, its movement, its curious nature. These studies remind us that art is often about a conversation between artists across time, each building on the observations and insights of those who came before. It’s like a visual echo, resonating with the same questions and curiosities about how we see and understand the world around us.