Handelsdokken te Oostende 1924

Léon Spilliaert made this drawing of Handelsdokken te Oostende with gouache and India ink on paper. It’s like stepping into a dream, right? I can imagine him there, staring out at the harbor. Dark blues and blacks dominate, punctuated by the occasional red and ochre boat. It’s almost as if he’s conjuring the scene as much as he’s depicting it. Look at how the boats float on a surface of dark ink, capturing the reflections of light. The way he applies the gouache makes the boats and buildings feel solid, anchored in place. I wonder if Spilliaert felt like that lone figure walking along the harbor, isolated yet connected to the world around him? There's a touch of Hopper's melancholic moodiness here. You know, artists are always in conversation, borrowing and riffing off each other’s ideas. Painting is like keeping a diary or writing a letter—full of secrets, open to interpretation, and constantly changing meaning as time goes by.