Een wonderbare genezing 1894 - 1959

This humorous comic strip titled 'Een wonderbare genezing'—or 'A Miraculous Cure'—was made by an anonymous artist, Monogrammist G.J. The palette is muted, a delicate dance of earthy browns, faded reds, and creamy whites. The artist's mark-making feels efficient, a kind of shorthand that's all about getting the story across. It's almost like looking at a faded tapestry, or a children’s book, the kind that lives in your memory as much for its images as for its narrative. Look at the figure in the centre, with his rotund belly and comical expression. The use of line and tone give him a sense of volume, yet there is something inherently flat about the image overall. This piece reminds me of Hogarth, the way he used narrative and humour to explore social themes. There is a conversational quality in the rendering, an invitation to decode the layers of visual information, and consider how it relates to art as an ongoing exchange.