Ontwerp voor een diploma van de Vereniging ter Bevordering van de Belangen des Boekhandels 1914

This is a certificate design for the booksellers association, made by Reinier Willem Petrus de Vries. It's hard to know exactly when it was made, but the artist lived between 1874 and 1952. This piece is intriguing because it reveals the artist’s process so clearly. The thin lines, like a ghost grid, remind me of underdrawings for frescos. You can see how he mapped out the space, experimenting with different lettering styles. The texture of the paper, with its slight imperfections, gives it a kind of raw authenticity. It’s not slick or overly refined, which makes it feel really human. This piece reminds me that art is a conversation that spans time, with artists constantly building on each other’s ideas. It’s this openness to interpretation that makes art so engaging, inviting us to bring our own experiences and perspectives to the mix.