Boomstudies 1878 - 1943

Willem van Konijnenburg made this drawing called "Boomstudies" using delicate, almost ghostly lines. I love how it feels like he's feeling his way through the subject, letting the process guide him. Look closely, and you can see the faint pencil marks, like whispers on the paper. There's a vertical cascade of lines on the left, balanced by these delicate flower heads on the right. It's all so understated, so quiet, like a secret language. The thinness of the lines, the way they almost disappear into the surface, it's like he's trying to capture something fleeting, a memory or a feeling. This reminds me of Agnes Martin and her search for essential forms. Both artists seem to be after something beyond representation, exploring the poetics of the barely there. Art, for me, is about this kind of searching, embracing the uncertainty, and finding beauty in the unfinished.