Studie c. 1887 - 1892

Editor: Here we have Willem Witsen's "Studie," a pencil drawing on paper from around 1887-1892, currently housed at the Rijksmuseum. It's…well, it's quite abstract. It feels almost like a collection of fleeting thoughts captured in graphite. What do you see in this piece, beyond the surface-level abstraction? Curator: It whispers of a liminal space, doesn't it? A place where forms are emerging or dissolving. I see a restless energy, a kind of searching. Look at the quality of the lines - some are assertive, others almost tentative, like the artist is feeling his way through a fog. Does it remind you a little of those half-formed dreams, the ones you can’t quite grasp when you wake up? Editor: Yes, actually! It's like trying to recall something just out of reach. The sketchiness really adds to that feeling. Curator: Exactly. It could be a landscape glimpsed through mist, or perhaps something entirely internal being externalised. Witsen was part of the Amsterdam Impressionism movement, and while known for cityscapes, perhaps this is a glimpse into his experimental, less representational side. I like that it demands a slower viewing, it isn’t easily digestible, is it? Does it make you want to reach for your own sketchbook? Editor: Definitely. It's freeing in a way, seeing that the final image doesn’t need to be perfect or fully realized. I was initially thrown by its abstract nature, but now I find it quite evocative. Curator: That’s the magic, isn't it? Letting go of preconceived notions and embracing the ambiguity. It’s a reminder that sometimes the greatest discoveries are found in the process itself, the act of searching, rather than a defined destination. It's lovely how such simple lines can convey such a sense of… well, everything and nothing, at the same time! Editor: I'll definitely look at abstract art a bit differently now, more focused on the feeling and process rather than just the final "product."