Skitse af bygd 1883

Lars Møller created this sketch of a settlement using watercolour and graphite on paper. The artwork depicts a community nestled in a stark, mountainous landscape. The buildings appear modest, seemingly integrated into the natural environment. The presence of a church is a visual marker and suggests a place where values are shared. Møller was born in 1842, a time of increased Danish involvement in Greenland. The sketch might have been produced during one of the artist's stays in Greenland. Perhaps this sketch reflects the artist's observations about the social structure of a small settlement? Was it a self-consciously progressive attempt to represent the landscape? To truly understand this work, further research into the colonial history of Greenland, the role of the church, and the artist’s biography would be invaluable. It reminds us that the meaning of art shifts, depending on the social and institutional contexts in which it is viewed.