Landschap 1881 - 1927

Johan Antonie de Jonge made this black and white chalky landscape sometime between the late 19th and early 20th century. The dominant gestural marks are dark smudges with softer strokes suggesting a grey palette. You can almost feel the artist at work, layering each shade, shifting and emerging through intuition. The marks almost seem to be falling down the page. I sympathize with the artist in front of a vista, thinking about how to convey the light and atmosphere. Look at how the thick surface shapes the experience and contributes to the emotional feeling of a place. The drawing might be about the emotional resonances of the landscape rather than the exact topography. These artists are in an ongoing conversation, exchanging ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. Drawing embraces ambiguity, allowing for multiple interpretations.