Brief aan Héloïse Bernard-Bodin 1878 - 1941

This scribbled letter, penned in 1894 by Emile Bernard to Héloïse Bernard-Bodin, is a flurry of dark ink dancing across the page. It’s all about the flow, a relentless outpouring, like watching someone think aloud. You know, that's how I feel about painting too – it’s a record of thought, not a polished performance. Look at how the lines loop and tangle, a dense thicket of words. It feels immediate, unfiltered, as if Bernard couldn’t wait to get it all down. I bet it's as close to his stream of consciousness as you can get. I'm drawn to the way these looping marks coalesce and dissipate across the surface, it’s all right there in the immediacy of the handwriting. It’s reminiscent of Van Gogh's letters, also filled with passionate intensity, yet Bernard's has a controlled elegance. It all reminds us that art isn’t about answers, it's about the questions we ask along the way.