Kaap Espartel, Marokko Possibly 1902

Jac van Looij sketched this scene of Kaap Espartel in Morocco, probably in February judging by the little note in the corner. The marks feel exploratory, almost like he's mapping out the space with his pencil. There’s this wonderful, scratchy texture across the whole drawing, made up of thin, crisscrossing lines that describe both the water and the sky. It's almost like he's trying to capture the feeling of the wind and the dampness of the air. Then, in the foreground, this little tower, rendered with such delicate lines. It’s so precise compared to the rest of the scene. Looking at this, I'm reminded of Whistler, the way he could evoke atmosphere with so few marks. But while Whistler was all about refinement, van Looij feels a bit more raw, more immediate. It’s like he’s saying, "Here's what I saw, here's what I felt."