Manuscript aan Vittorio Pica c. 1903

This is Philip Zilcken’s Manuscript aan Vittorio Pica, and honestly, it could be any page of writing—the kind you find tucked away in old books or the back of a drawer. The ink has a faded quality, almost blending into the paper itself, which for me speaks to the quiet intimacy of correspondence. Zilcken wasn’t making a grand statement; he was in conversation with someone, sharing thoughts in a way that feels both deliberate and off-the-cuff. Look closely, and you can see the slight variations in the ink's density, the way some letters are bolder than others. There's a rhythm in that imperfection, a kind of dance. It reminds me that art, even in its most functional forms, is about process and exchange, a back-and-forth between intention and accident. Like the paintings of Cy Twombly, it’s a reminder that beauty can be found in the everyday, in the simple act of mark-making and communication.