Paar uitkijkend over oosterse stad 1908 - 1937

Bernard Willem Wierink made this drawing, Paar uitkijkend over oosterse stad, using graphite, pen and brush in grey and brown ink, and watercolour. There's an immediacy to Wierink's method. The layered marks build up the image slowly, as if the artist is searching for the right form, adjusting and correcting as they go. The thin washes of colour, especially the blue and the grey, create a sense of depth. Notice the subtle ways the artist uses line and wash to define the architecture, how the lines of the building fade into the distance. It's a dance between precision and looseness. Look closely at the figures in the foreground. The way Wierink renders their clothing with loose strokes. The light seems to dissolve the forms, blurring the boundary between the figures and their surroundings. It reminds me of the work of James McNeill Whistler, who was interested in mood and atmosphere. Wierink isn't trying to capture a literal scene, but a feeling, a mood.