Twee sjouwers en een wagen in de Molensteeg te Wijk bij Duurstede 1906 - 1907

This is a drawing by Willem Witsen, two men and a cart, probably made with charcoal or a similar drawing stick. I am thinking about the artist standing in the street and trying to capture the scene in front of him. The marks are fast and gestural. The artist has attempted to capture the essence of the figures and the cart rather than focusing on details. It's interesting how the artist is just roughing in and trying to capture the essence of the scene rather than focusing on details. It makes me think about other artists like Daumier, who also captured scenes of everyday life with a similar sense of immediacy and empathy. What I like about it is the lack of preciousness, a direct and visceral response to the world. It shows how the practice of drawing can be a way of engaging with the world, of trying to understand and capture something of its fleeting beauty and complexity. Like all drawings it is a search.