Staande vrouw bij een wegwijzer before 1949

Hans Borrebach made this drawing, *Standing Woman by a Signpost*, with ink on paper. Look at this woman, posed with her hands on her hips and that cool stare. She’s at a crossroads—literally! I wonder what she’s thinking? The image is made with simple black lines, except for some black fill. A playful heart shot through with an arrow tops the signpost, so maybe she’s trying to decide which way to go in love. I remember being young and thinking that love was a choice, a direction to take. But that’s just not how it happens, is it? The flat planes and graphic style remind me of other artists, like Alex Katz or even some of Matisse's cut-outs. It’s all about reduction and expression, distilling a moment to its purest form. We all learn from each other, riffing on ideas across time. And like painting, love is messy, full of surprises, and never quite what you expect.