Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1919

Curator: Let's turn our attention to a peculiar little artwork entitled "Briefkaart aan Philip Zilcken," likely from 1919, crafted by Alphonse Stengelin. It's a drawing done with ink on paper. Editor: A postcard! It looks so humble, yet intensely intimate. All that swooping, scratching script gives it this wonderfully private feel. Like we are glimpsing someone's innermost thoughts. Curator: Indeed. Postcards as artifacts are powerful because they embody fragmented communication. They acted as visual and textual bridges, carrying both mundane news and urgent sentiments. In the absence of modern immediate communication, something like this becomes treasured. Editor: Makes you think who Philip Zilcken was. This card mentions something about Lausanne and someone working hard as an architect. Each squiggle seems fraught with its own urgency or affection. I keep seeing almost architectural shapes in the handwritten text, like fragments of a hidden city. Curator: Fascinating observation. The address panel conforms with typical layout with nation and then street information; the other part showcases dense and somewhat decorative prose. It may say a lot about the personal connection the sender wishes to portray through the handwriting style. Each stroke could indicate intimacy and a need to hide private content from other readers. Editor: You know, there's something really touching about thinking of the life this little scrap of paper has lived, the journey it's taken, the hands it’s passed through, like its own mini epic. What are the odds it will end in a museum after more than 100 years. It seems almost absurd. Curator: The endurance of these small objects serves to rewrite the history. An item once central in a person's or people’s day-to-day routine is transformed into an historical symbol, or proof of our humanity and communication in the past. Editor: True! Looking at it now, you get a sense of real human communication which transcends what is said, but just how it felt, perhaps like uncovering memories… Curator: Exactly, this ‘Briefkaart’ reveals the richness and fragility of communication, transcending its mere textual content. A poignant echo of connections from a century past.