Strandkoetsen in de branding 1884 - 1927

Editor: This is Johan Antonie de Jonge's drawing, "Strandkoetsen in de branding," made sometime between 1884 and 1927 using pencil and ink. It depicts a couple of horses and these boxy little beach carriages; it looks like a preliminary sketch, full of quick lines. What stands out to you in this sketch? Curator: The rapid lines definitely convey the transient nature of the beach – the ever-shifting sands and tides, the temporary presence of these bathing machines. Notice how the horses, though sketched with less detail than a finished work might demand, are nonetheless imbued with a sense of weight and purpose. Editor: That’s a great point. It does have a sort of in-between quality, and the symbols of horses are deeply embedded in human consciousness as figures of labor but also status, and pleasure. How would that have been true here? Curator: Precisely. These horses weren’t simply beasts of burden; they were facilitators of leisure, pulling the wealthy toward the sea's perceived therapeutic embrace. These carriages offered privacy and shelter, reflecting a specific Victorian sensibility about modesty and social rituals. But look at how the drawing hints at something more, too. Notice how the lines around the edges fray; are those lines purely representational? Are they also there to carry out the work of closure or exposure? What isn’t shown? Editor: Right, it makes me wonder about the figures *inside* those bathing machines, what they were doing, and perhaps about the class distinctions at play… Curator: Exactly. These carriages also protected those inside from *being seen*, from social transgression or just shame, like little theaters. So, the unseen becomes powerful, even *symbolic*— Editor: That’s fascinating. Thanks for pointing out those undercurrents; I definitely see much more in the sketch now than I did at first. Curator: My pleasure. Sometimes, it's what's *not* immediately visible that resonates most deeply.