Landschap c. 1915 - 1920

Willem Witsen made this landscape drawing with graphite on paper. It's a study in grey, really, with a range of soft marks creating a hazy, atmospheric feel. You can tell Witsen was interested in the process of artmaking, in the pure potential of applying graphite to paper. The texture is so interesting because of the way the graphite is layered. It's almost like he's building up the landscape bit by bit. See the horizon line? It's not just a line, it's a collection of small, almost frantic marks that create this blurred edge. It makes me think of other artists that take the landscape and use it to explore texture and light, like Whistler. But what I love most is that Witsen’s drawing is a reminder that art is an ongoing conversation, a constant exchange of ideas and techniques, with no one definitive answer. It's open to interpretation, just like the landscape itself.