Schetsboek met 42 bladen 1919 - 1921

This sketchbook with 42 pages was made by Willem Cornelis Rip. As we look at this intimate object, we might consider the world that Rip inhabited. Born in 1856, Rip was a contemporary of Vincent van Gogh, and like Van Gogh, he was deeply engaged with the social realities of the Netherlands. Rip came from a family of artists, and his work often focused on landscapes, cityscapes, and genre scenes, and it would have been made during the rise of industrialization in the Netherlands. What stories might this sketchbook tell us about his artistic practice? How does it feel to hold in your mind the potential of 42 blank pages, each waiting to be filled with the artist’s observations, reflections, and creative explorations? Consider this sketchbook not just as a container for drawings, but as a mirror reflecting the artist’s inner world and his dialogue with a rapidly changing society.