Berekeningen 1905 - 1906

Carel Adolph Lion Cachet created this page of calculations with pencil on paper, and it is currently held in the Rijksmuseum. The page is dominated by a series of numerical calculations. We see additions and subtractions scrawled across the page, interspersed with annotations. The artist is using the structure of arithmetic to dissect and understand the world, to apply a system, however irrational, to his life. Consider how the very act of calculation becomes a form of expression. The rough texture of the paper contrasts with the precise, if frantic, nature of the calculations. The lines of numbers intersect at strange angles, creating a visual network that destabilizes the traditional order of mathematics. In the end, this work makes us question the nature of order, chaos, and the human desire to quantify the world around us, even when it resists such quantification. It's a testament to how art can be found in the most unexpected of places, challenging our perceptions of beauty and meaning.