Brief aan Johan Henri Gustaaf Cohen Gosschalk Possibly 1910 - 1912

Curator: Here we have a photographic reproduction of a letter, titled "Brief aan Johan Henri Gustaaf Cohen Gosschalk," possibly dating from around 1910 to 1912. The letter, from Wally Moes, is presented on paper. My initial reaction is a sense of intimacy, peering into a moment of correspondence frozen in time. The texture of the paper and the handwriting give it a very tangible feel. Editor: It does evoke a sense of closeness. What I notice immediately is the care put into the letter itself; we know, and can see, that the artist worked with writing implements and photography. Do we know who the intended recipient was? Curator: Yes, Johan Cohen Gosschalk was a Dutch painter known for his portraits and landscapes, so he was likely an established, public figure. This letter appears to be a response to a written work he sent to Moes and a mutual acquaintance. Editor: So it's a network of artistic labor – Cohen Gosschalk produces a manuscript, which in turn elicits this response. There is much creative process embodied within the document: The social and intellectual exchange becomes art in its own way. Curator: Exactly! Moes mentions reading Gosschalk's "geschrift" with great interest. And praises the recipient's work to the extent that "one hardly notices the labor invested within" to achieve a sense of “purity, distinction and simplicity” to the effect that Moes suggests that 'Alle Achtung,' a phrase of German approval, "as the Germans would say" to be the only possible feedback, suggesting the piece left Moes in a stunned awe. What is particularly interesting from my viewpoint is how this reflects artistic circles in the Netherlands during that time, especially their relationship to intellectual figures and movements. The mention of the exhibit opening, in "the Hague" certainly grounds this letter within a time and space of artistic activity. Editor: Considering that it is just the trace of past making and correspondence reproduced now, there’s a layered remove between that initial creative impetus and our own engagement today, and indeed the potential viewers, too. Also consider this specific moment when both are discussing art pieces themselves – not art objects. How does a new exhibit compare with the work that inspired a peer to share admiration? And why a photographic reproduction? Was the photographic reproduction part of Wally Moes' original "Letter," was the image a study of an art work to circulate widely, a new possibility emerging from photography and reproducible media? Curator: Perhaps these photographic reproductions facilitated wider circulation or record-keeping within their artistic circle? Either option points to photography as the key element to ensure it remained. Editor: Exactly. Thinking about the interplay between the writing, its reception, the labor involved, and the subsequent representation through photography, this piece certainly invites a closer consideration of process, making, and historical reception. Curator: Absolutely, and on how art exists within networks of influence, support, and dissemination.