Gezicht op Veere 1901 - 1919

Wijnand Otto Jan Nieuwenkamp made this etching, Gezicht op Veere, with ink on paper. I can imagine him inking the plate, wiping it back, then running it through the press. What a satisfying process! I love the way this feels so solid, but also so fleeting. The sky is pale, but the heavy church looms over the little town like a watchful giant. I can imagine Nieuwenkamp thinking about the relationship between the man-made and the natural world. The landscape seems almost alive, and the buildings have an organic quality too. He must have stood in that field, sketching, feeling the Zeeland breeze. Artists like Nieuwenkamp are in conversation with each other, each one building on the work of those who came before. They help us see the world in new and exciting ways.