Brief aan Frans Buffa en Zonen Possibly 1874

Curator: Looking at this sheet of paper filled with delicate handwriting, I immediately feel transported to another time. There's something so intimate about seeing the direct connection of thought to script. Editor: Indeed. What we’re looking at is a piece by Hendrik Albert van Trigt, titled "Brief aan Frans Buffa en Zonen," likely created around 1874. It resides here at the Rijksmuseum, an ink drawing on paper. Curator: A letter... there’s a vulnerability inherent in letter writing. Knowing someone sat down to pen these thoughts, choosing words, revealing something of themselves...it gives the object an aura. The visual is just a vehicle. Editor: Precisely. It provides an opportunity to reflect on communication itself—its evolution, its power structures. Who had access to literacy? How did correspondence shape societal discourse? I can't read the text obviously but the ink bleeds feel deeply rooted. Curator: I am guessing by what looks like old Dutch? Probably personal; this might give the clue to van Trigt’s relationships. Was Buffa a friend? A patron? It reminds you how fragile and time-locked correspondence is—preserved by circumstance. And those elegant flourishes... it hints to an almost performative aspect in that era's writing. Editor: It makes me think about slowing down. These days everything goes digital. Quick thoughts become typed memos that fly around the world as an instantaneous exchange. The writing shows its age. Maybe it’s a plea for something. To be understood maybe. Curator: This artwork, seemingly simple, unpacks volumes about history, societal structures, and our intimate selves. And in today's context, maybe it serves as a reminder about intention. What intention and care do we bring to our own words when we interact today? Editor: In that sense, yes, it’s more than old paper. It sparks conversations that are maybe far deeper than the correspondence written on it.