Kasteel Heeswijk 1901

This etching of Kasteel Heeswijk, probably made with acid on a metal plate by Willem Wenckebach, has a dreamy quality. You can almost feel him dragging the etching tool across the surface, unsure, but feeling his way through the shadows and light. I imagine Wenckebach looking for the perfect angle, contemplating how to capture the castle's essence, its mass. Is he trying to show the castle as a strong, protective fortress, or does he want to hint at its vulnerability, reflecting on time passing? Notice how the lines in the water are vertical, contrasting with the chaotic criss-crosses on the castle. That contrast makes me think about what parts of life we can control and which we cannot. The castle looms large and imposing, yet Wenckebach treats it gently. He understood that the only way to truly see something is to approach it with a bit of tenderness and a willingness to see it as fragile, changeable, and human.