Bomen voor gebouwen 1882 - 1923

Willem Witsen rendered "Bomen voor gebouwen" with a charcoal stick on paper. The drawing features a stark contrast between light and shadow, creating a dramatic yet unfinished quality. Notice the dominance of vertical lines, mimicking the upward thrust of tree trunks, set against the blank space, with diagonal hatching and lines in the top right. These lines and shading form dense, almost impenetrable thickets which implies space. The buildings themselves are barely present, and are implied only by the title. Witsen destabilizes the traditional landscape composition; trees dominate, obscuring the architecture. What might Witsen be suggesting about nature versus the human environment by obscuring human presence? He offers us a way of seeing urban landscapes not as separate from, but enmeshed within, the natural world. Ultimately, the power of this drawing lies in how it prompts us to reconsider our surroundings, by challenging the traditional hierarchy between nature and urban structures.