Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1918

This is a letter, "Brief aan Philip Zilcken", written in 1918 by Léon Paschal. The flow of the script on this letter reminds me that making art, like writing, is a process. The ink is a faded grey. Some of the handwritten text is darker than other areas, suggesting he may have paused to think about what he wanted to write, or the consistency of the ink changed slightly. Look at how the letters flow into each other, how the lines lean to the right as he progresses down the page. The letter ‘M’ in 'Mon cher' stands out. Each line is deliberately and carefully drawn, making the letter look grounded and strong, like tiny architectural structures. The care that Paschal took when writing reminds me of Cy Twombly's scribbled paintings. Both artists revel in the act of creation, leaving visible traces of their thoughts and emotions for us to decipher. There is no one true meaning in a letter or a painting, just layers of intention waiting to be discovered.