Autowerkplaats van de Amsterdamsche Rijtuig Maatschappij (ARM) 1913 - 1948

Herman Heijenbrock made this painting of the Autowerkplaats van de Amsterdamsche Rijtuig Maatschappij, we don't know exactly when, but look at the way he's used these chalky greys and blues to sketch out the scene, almost like he’s feeling his way through the space. It’s very process-oriented. I love the surface quality here, the way Heijenbrock hasn't tried to hide the physicality of the paint. You can almost feel the texture of the brushstrokes, especially in the way the light catches on the car bonnets. There’s this one area, near the bottom right, where you can see the different coloured paints left in the tins, and how they seem to reflect the muted light. Heijenbrock’s work has this connection to artists like Adolph Menzel who were painting industrial scenes with a similar kind of directness. It’s like a conversation across time, with each artist adding their own unique voice to the mix. It’s not about having one fixed interpretation, but about letting the painting speak in its own way.