Kalenderblad voor april 1910 met een witte kwikstaart 1909

Theo van Hoytema made this calendar page for April 1910 with lithographic ink. The muted colors and delicate lines remind me of early spring, everything is just beginning to peek through. I can imagine the artist carefully layering each line, the gentle cross-hatching building up the form of the white wagtail perched on a weathered post. The bird is so alert. What is it looking at? What is it thinking? I feel a connection to the delicate lines of the bird’s feathers, and also to the overall design of the calendar page. Van Hoytema’s careful use of line and texture reminds me of other artists who found beauty in simplicity and everyday life. And I think that artists, like these birds, are always on the lookout, perched on the edge of the world, observing and translating what they see into something new.