Brief aan Jan Ponstijn en Henriëtte Johanna Petronella van Hilten Possibly 1927

This letter was written by Leo Gestel on paper in 1927; it's addressed to Jan Ponstijn and Henriëtte Johanna Petronella van Hilten. Just look at the way the letters bleed into each other, it’s so free and yet so controlled. The texture of the paper must have been absorbent, the ink spreading out like little explosions of thought. You can almost feel the nib of the pen pressing down, the artist’s hand moving across the surface in a dance of intention and accident. See how the lines vary in thickness and darkness, creating a rhythm that’s almost musical? It reminds me of Cy Twombly’s scribbled drawings, where the act of writing becomes a form of abstract expression. Take, for example, the flourish under the word 'Meste,' it's like a little signature within a signature, a moment of pure playfulness. Gestel, like Twombly, reminds us that art is not about perfection, but about the messy, beautiful process of creation. It is a journey of discovery rather than a quest for perfection.