Schetsboek met 19 bladen c. 1882 - 1884

This is a sketchbook with 19 pages made by Willem Witsen. The book’s form reflects the kind of artistic practice that Witsen, born in 1860, would have known intimately. Sketchbooks like this were a mainstay of academic training, and also for artists working outside the academy who wanted to sharpen their skills of observation. Bound together, the sheets of paper create a portable, practical workspace for recording visual ideas. The sketchbook is also an artifact of the early industrial age, when paper became much more widely available and affordable. While it's easy to overlook, the sketchbook has served as a crucial means of production and reproduction. It democratized artistic training by enabling artists to practice and refine their skills independently. By considering these contexts, we can appreciate how materials, making, and artistic practices are deeply intertwined with broader social and economic forces.