Studie af bøgetræer 1830 - 1833

Dankvart Dreyer made this study of beech trees in pencil on paper, sometime before his early death in 1852. Here, Dreyer isolates a motif from the natural world, but it is worth asking if it is just a simple representation. In the mid-19th century, during the Danish Golden Age, landscape painting rose to prominence, embodying national identity and cultural values. Artists often depicted the Danish countryside as a symbol of home and belonging. Beech trees, like those rendered here, were particularly emblematic, seen as distinctly Danish. However, it is important to remember that the “national” is always a selective representation. Was this landscape accessible to all? Did it represent the experiences of the working classes, or those excluded from the dominant culture? Considering these questions reminds us that artistic representations are always intertwined with social, political, and economic realities. By delving into the cultural context of this sketch, using sources from the period, we can better understand the complex meanings embedded within it.