Cartouche in een rechthoekig kader 1912

Reinier Willem Petrus de Vries made this pencil sketch for ‘Cartouche in een rechthoekig kader’ on gridded paper. It's a preparatory drawing so we can see the artist working out the symmetry, playing with placement, getting the proportions just so. I wonder if he was trying to create a sense of depth, with these receding rectangles. The image is organized vertically with the oval shape at the top, a sort of heraldic emblem, and then the swooping foliate design below. Imagine de Vries leaning over his drawing, squinting, erasing, adjusting, and trying to find the right balance. It makes me think of other designers like William Morris, and the Arts and Crafts movement. These artists are all in conversation with one another, across time, all trying to find new ways to represent the beauty that they see in the world, inspiring one another's creativity. And it's never fixed; there are always multiple ways to interpret a work.