Gezadeld paard met een tuig 1890 - 1946

Cornelis Vreedenburgh created this drawing of a saddled horse with a harness, now held in the Rijksmuseum. The work is an exercise in tonal variation and structural economy; its formal qualities reveal much about artistic representation. Notice how Vreedenburgh uses the gray pencil lines to define the horse’s form. The direction and density of these lines create areas of light and shadow, which in turn suggest volume and texture. This interplay isn’t merely descriptive, however. By stripping away detail, Vreedenburgh highlights the essential geometry of the subject. The horse becomes less a specific animal and more an exploration of form. The sketch’s incomplete nature invites us to consider the process of representation itself. What must be included for a form to be recognizable? Where does representation end and abstraction begin? Vreedenburgh's strategic use of line and shading challenges the viewer to actively participate in completing the image, emphasizing the subjective nature of perception.