Annotatie Possibly 1906 - 1909

Willem Witsen made this sketch, Annotatie, with pen and ink. You can see the residue of its making. I imagine Witsen holding the pen just so, lightly touching the paper, and then committing to it. Scribbling in a hurry! It looks like something jotted down, a passing thought made visible. It reminds me of Cy Twombly's scribbles, but more restrained. There is a certain elegance to this gesture. The starkness of the white paper, contrasted with the dark ink, creates a visual tension. It makes me think about the act of annotation itself - the impulse to mark, to remember, to converse with the world through writing. It’s like Witsen is in conversation with himself.