Ontwerp voor raam in het Noordertransept in de Dom te Utrecht c. 1934

Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst made this design for a window in the Utrecht Cathedral, using chalk and charcoal, sometime in the early 20th century. Can you imagine him there, charcoal dust smudging his fingers, the cathedral's echoes all around? I see a face, pieced together like a stained-glass puzzle. The browns are earthy, solid; the reds and blues in the background hinting at something deeper, maybe a storm or a fire. The lines aren't just boundaries; they're holding the whole thing together, like the leading in a stained-glass window. The face is gazing intently, with an almost pained expression. What do you think he's thinking? Holst, like other symbolists, looked to the past for inspiration, to medieval art and the pre-Raphaelites. Each artist borrows, steals, reinvents. And that's how art moves forward, piece by piece. Each artist bringing their own perspective, questions, and answers.