Zelfportret: B-1-1, 13 februari Possibly 1942

Cor van Teeseling made this self-portrait in pencil on February 13th, 1942. Imagine the artist with their pencil, lightly sketching the contours of their own face, feeling the weight of the moment. The delicate lines of the drawing create a sense of introspection. You can see the artist looking intently in the mirror, searching for something, maybe trying to understand themself. I wonder what it was like to be van Teeseling in that moment. The pressure of the pencil on the paper seems light, but purposeful, creating depth and volume on a flat surface. You can almost feel the texture of the paper, see the slight variations in tone as the pencil moves across it. It is a moving drawing, especially knowing he died later that year, aged just 27. I think that he would be proud that his work lives on here at the Rijksmuseum.