Herenfiets en een bakfiets met een reclamebord 1890 - 1946

Cornelis Vreedenburgh made this drawing of a bicycle and delivery bike with a sign, using pen on paper. I love the directness, the lack of fuss, the pure information. The lines are economical but they suggest so much. I find myself focusing on the cross-hatching in the lower left of the image, these clustered lines represent the shadow under the wheel. It's not just about the object, but about the light around it, how the light defines the forms. This relates to the piece as a whole; there is a sense of a specific time of day, the immediacy of the sunlight, as though the artist has quickly made this en plein air. It reminds me of some quick sketches by Van Gogh; in particular, the mark-making and the everyday subject matter. Both artists see the world with an unsentimental eye, finding a profound beauty in the mundane details of life. It shows that art isn't always about grand statements; sometimes, it's about seeing the extraordinary in the ordinary.