Studie, vermoedelijk een dier 1914 - 1916

This little graphite drawing, *Studie, vermoedelijk een dier* – Study, probably an animal – was made by Willem Cornelis Rip. You know, it looks like it was made in one of those sketchbooks that artists carry around with them everywhere. I can just imagine Rip, out in a field somewhere, quickly trying to capture the essence of this animal – maybe it’s a horse or a cow? The lines are so loose and free, like he's just letting his hand move across the page. It's like he's not trying to be perfect or realistic, but just trying to get a sense of the animal's form and energy. I bet he was trying to understand its weight, how it holds itself in the world. It reminds me of some of the drawings that other artists like Van Gogh were doing around the same time – just trying to capture the everyday world around them. It's like they're all in conversation with each other, trying to figure out what it means to be an artist in this modern world.