Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken before 1909

This is a briefkaart, or postcard, to Philip Zilcken, sent sometime around 1911 by Arij Prins. Look at the restrained palette, the soft, muted greens and creams. It whispers of correspondence and daily life from a different era. What I find fascinating is the materiality of the card itself. The texture, the slight imperfections, the way the ink from the stamps and handwriting bleeds into the paper. It's a reminder that art isn't just about grand statements; it's also about these small, intimate gestures, like the careful application of a stamp in the upper-right, a circle containing another set of shapes and letters. This element echoes the larger compositions, as though the artist is exploring ways to balance micro and macro. It makes me think of the collages of Kurt Schwitters, who found beauty and meaning in the discarded fragments of everyday life. This postcard, with its ephemera of postmarks and handwriting, invites us to consider how art can be found in the most unexpected places.