Bandontwerp voor: N.S. Ljeskow, De onsterfelijke, 1965 before 1965

This is Karel Thole’s ‘Bandontwerp voor: N.S. Ljeskow, De onsterfelijke’ made in 1965, a cover design sketched with what looks like black ink on paper. I love the immediacy of the marks – you can see the artist thinking, improvising, and correcting. It feels like he’s trying to capture a likeness, or maybe even a mood. The strokes are loose and confident, but also tentative, searching. The solid strokes of ink giving a sense of weight and shadow, contrasting with the delicacy of the lines around the edges. I wonder what Thole was thinking about as he made it? The way he’s built up the image from simple lines and shapes reminds me of some of the old masters, like Rembrandt, who used etching to explore similar themes of light and shadow. There’s something timeless about this image – a sense of history and tradition, but also a feeling of freshness and spontaneity. It makes you want to pick up a pen and start drawing yourself.