Brussel 1915

Willem Adrianus Grondhout created this print of Brussels; it’s a moody landscape, all greys and blacks, that city reflected in the water. I always think about how artists use specific materials to try and conjure something out of nothing. The texture here is so important to the image, it's almost like a memory or dream. I can imagine Grondhout dragging his etching needle across the plate, digging in and leaving these tiny marks that when printed, capture the light so beautifully. What do you think he was thinking when he created the dark sky, scratched in with so many lines? This print reminds me a bit of Whistler, that same kind of tonal exploration and atmospheric quality. Artists are always in conversation with each other like that, across time, sharing ideas. It's not about fixed meanings, but about an ongoing exchange of ideas.