Brief aan Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk 1897

Curator: Here we have "Brief aan Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk" (Letter to Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk), penned by Richard Roland Holst in 1897, using ink on paper. Look closely at the calligraphic style, the delicate touch. It whispers a story, doesn’t it? What's your initial reaction? Editor: It does! I notice first how personal it feels, despite just being text. There's something very intimate about handwriting. The evenness of the ink and slight impression gives an insight into Holst's inner state at that moment, what thoughts he felt the need to put down on paper, as if to immortalize in reality what was occurring only in thought before this. And it seems the contents are a secret because I cannot understand it, it is like the page of a private journal, something like this. I find that fascinating in this piece, I want to understand him as a person! I have to ask: How does knowing it was a letter, and the materials it was written with, influence your interpretation? Curator: Ah, precisely! Knowing it’s a letter changes everything. The very act of writing then, becomes charged. I think that's what you see. The ink, so dark against the paper's creamy surface, lends gravity to each word. Realism peeks through here; Holst is documenting life. Calligraphy elevates it; it is his heart made tangible. It looks like some sort of antiquated handwriting. Does that intrigue you as well? Editor: It does, yes, how old forms are both unfamiliar and carry with them histories and personalities we would know nothing of otherwise, had someone like Holst not set them in pen, setting that standard. I see it a different standard as an early step for our world, where it's becoming a normal expectation for anything ever put to thought can immediately manifest into tangible output with enough tools or talent. It may have once seemed absurd, yet here we are! So what I am gathering is you appreciate the history behind the artist, material and meaning; it really opens doors of interpretation for something we now recognize as fine art, correct? Curator: Exactly! To know this piece as more than just a document is transformative! Seeing a person immortalized on the paper really shifts everything into view! I feel a connection with Holst, this humble page a symbol of both ephemerality and lasting beauty. I think it reminds us that everyone at every point in time is very close to what we call now and everything that makes reality today. Editor: Absolutely, that's a really nice note to take away. Thanks so much for shedding light on the artwork's context.