Jonge geiten 1937

Here, in the Rijksmuseum is Aristide Maillol's 'Jonge geiten', a work of unknown date. It is a print with a textured, tactile quality, defined by bold contrasts. The dark grey background accentuates the delicate white outlines of the goats, creating a striking visual tension. Maillol employs a reductive approach, stripping the subject to its essential form and emphasizing line and shape. This simplification invites us to consider the underlying structure of representation itself. The arrangement of the goats—two standing atop one another and another below—creates a subtle rhythm within the composition. Maillol's use of negative space is significant, defining the figures as much as the lines themselves. It is a semiotic interplay where the presence of the goats is asserted through their absence. This work, through its engagement with form and representation, challenges our perceptions and expectations of how meaning is constructed.