Gezicht op de kust van IJmuiden met vuurtoren en schip 1902

This is Carel Nicolaas Storm van 's-Gravesande’s "View of the Coast of IJmuiden with Lighthouse and Ship," done in 1902, though the Rijksmuseum doesn't specify the medium, I'd hazard a guess it's ink and wash. What really grabs me here is the directness, the way the marks are so unpretentious. See how the lighthouse is just a few quick flicks of the wrist, yet it totally works? There’s no fussing, no trying to get it “right,” just a confident capturing of a feeling or a memory. I feel like he has just caught a scene in a hurry. Look at the way he suggests the water with these horizontal dashes, and then this darker blob for the boat. It’s almost childlike in its simplicity, but there’s also this incredible sophistication in knowing exactly how much to leave out. It reminds me a little of some of James McNeill Whistler’s more ephemeral watercolors, where the atmosphere is everything. Both artists knew how to let the white of the paper do a lot of the work. For me, this piece speaks to the idea that art is not about perfection, but about the honesty and immediacy of the gesture.