De trap des levens 1922

Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst made this stained-glass design using what looks like chalky paint or pastels. I can imagine the artist rubbing the pigment into the paper, layering these colours over and over, maybe fixing it as he goes. It’s got this wonderful graphic quality. I wonder if he was thinking about the weight of the lines, the rhythm of the colour? You can see how the black outline creates a geometric framework, almost like a cage, for the two figures. They're caught in a moment of embrace, maybe a farewell. The muted purples and blues give it a somber, melancholic mood, don’t they? It reminds me of other early twentieth-century artists who were trying to flatten space and evoke emotional depth through simplified forms. I’m thinking of folks like Paula Modersohn-Becker. Artists are always responding to each other, across time, inspiring each other. It's this beautiful conversation that keeps evolving. It embraces the unresolved, allowing for multiple readings.