Bos bij de Wolfsberg te Groesbeek 1901 - 1907

Editor: Here we have "Bos bij de Wolfsberg te Groesbeek", or "Forest near the Wolfsberg at Groesbeek", created between 1901 and 1907 by Anna Catharina Maria van Eeghen. It’s a pencil drawing on paper. The wispy, almost ghostly, trees definitely set a contemplative mood for me. What jumps out at you? Curator: Well, it reminds me of trying to capture a dream. You grasp for details, the trunks of the trees perhaps, but the rest dissolves into a soft blur, that whisper of foliage, don't you think? Eeghen isn't just showing us a forest; she's hinting at how we *remember* a forest. The way sunlight dapples through leaves, leaving more impression than substance. Have you ever felt that way when drawing en plein air? Editor: Definitely! Like chasing a feeling more than a picture. It’s interesting you say that; I get the sense that the artist had an impressionist agenda to quickly get down their perception of this place. What I see seems immediate; yet, also like an act of meditation to really capture every part. Curator: Exactly. And consider the "unfinished" nature of the sketch. The impressionists were daring us to see the beauty in process, in fleeting moments. Perhaps Eeghen wanted us to fill in the blanks, to bring our own memories of walking through whispering woods. Now tell me, what stories do *you* hear whispered in those pencil lines? Editor: Hmm, I feel encouraged to explore and bring myself into it. So thank you – now I appreciate the piece more holistically and openly! Curator: My pleasure! Maybe now we should both grab a sketchbook and a pencil and lose ourselves in our own version of a forest. After all, that's where the real magic begins.