Brief aan Philip Zilcken 1880 - 1930

This is a letter to Philip Zilcken by Barbara Elisabeth van Houten, handwritten on a memorandum slip. It is not a painting, but in the same way that a painter applies paint to the canvas, she has applied words to paper. What’s she saying, I wonder? I can’t read it, I don't know Dutch! But I can imagine her, sitting in a room, pen in hand, thinking about the right words to say. The letters are elegantly formed, each one carefully placed, a delicate dance of ink across the page, and I find myself thinking of Cy Twombly’s scrawled handwriting paintings. Just as Twombly explored line and form through written words, Van Houten explores the subtle nuances of language through the act of writing. There is such intention in every stroke! This is a visual composition, even if it’s made of words.