Brief aan Jan van Wely Possibly 1605 - 1610

Hendrick Goltzius created this letter to Jan van Wely around 1605 using pen and brown ink, a medium that lends itself to both intimacy and formality. Immediately, the eye is drawn to the density of script at the letter's top, gradually thinning out into near blankness. The writing, dense and looping, almost takes on the quality of an abstract pattern, where the act of writing supersedes the semantic content. Beneath this complex visual field of language, a small portrait emerges, seemingly unrelated yet undeniably integral to the letter's overall composition. Its placement introduces a sense of imbalance, a disruption of the expected hierarchy between text and image, word and representation. This disruption destabilizes any straightforward reading. Is the portrait a mere decoration, or does it function as a commentary on the act of communication itself? Goltzius's work challenges us to reconsider the boundaries of meaning, the ways in which visual elements interact to produce interpretations that extend beyond the literal. Through this interplay, the letter becomes more than a message; it becomes a site of aesthetic and intellectual inquiry.