Schilder Jan van Oort in zijn atelier aan de Plantage Middenlaan 37 in Amsterdam after 1903

This photograph, taken by Sigmund Löw, captures the artist Jan van Oort in his Amsterdam studio, sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. The studio itself is a character, filled with canvases depicting birds—herons and pelicans—in various stages of completion. What strikes me is the array of works, revealing van Oort’s artistic process. You can see the development from initial sketch to more realised paintings. It’s like getting a peek behind the curtain, seeing the artist wrestling with form and colour. The paintings feel immediate and personal, an attempt to capture the essence of these creatures. They remind me a little of James Ensor, the way he creates a world that’s both familiar and slightly off-kilter. Ultimately, art is a conversation, each artist building on what came before. It is an invitation to see the world anew, to find beauty in unexpected places.