Ornamentele rand met eksters c. 1910

Bernard Willem Wierink made this ornamental row with magpies, we don’t know exactly when, but it’s giving me major turn-of-the-century vibes. There’s something wonderfully simple and direct about this print. The way the blocky forms are laid down, it’s not trying to be anything it isn’t. The reddish-brown ink sits on the surface of the paper, creating this tactile presence. You can almost feel the pressure of the block, the way the ink might have feathered out slightly at the edges. Look at the tails of those magpies. See how each feather is carefully delineated, but the overall effect is still so bold and graphic? It’s like Wierink is playing with this tension between detail and abstraction. The negative space becomes just as important as the printed areas, defining the shapes and creating this dynamic rhythm across the composition. This piece reminds me a little of the graphic work of someone like Félix Vallotton, who also had a knack for distilling forms down to their essence. Ultimately, it's about embracing the limitations of the medium and finding beauty in the imperfect.