Vier rijen stoelen en een figuurstudie c. 1905 - 1906

Carel Adolph Lion Cachet made this double-page spread sketchbook drawing of chairs, figures, and calculations with graphite on paper. Look at the way these chair forms line up! I'm imagining him in a waiting room or a theater, rapidly capturing what's in front of him. Perhaps it's all about capturing volume and structure as efficiently as possible. He's playing with the basic geometry, right? But, then there are these numbers jotted all over the place. So maybe, he's working out the logistics of space, the relationship of bodies to objects, and the economics of how it all adds up. And what about the little portrait tucked in the corner? It's like a little burst of life amidst all the practical considerations. It reminds me that painting itself is a kind of calculation, but one that adds up to something more than the sum of its parts.