Pierrot die een boek leest 1921

Lodewijk Schelfhout made this print of a Pierrot reading a book. It has an etched feel, like a memory half-faded. I wonder what it was like to be Schelfhout, working on this? He’s composing a whole world – a figure, a town, a landscape, a feeling. The Pierrot’s got his eyes closed, maybe he's trying to imagine what he's reading. It's a pretty romantic scene, right? The rose in the vase, the distant towers... he looks like he's right in the middle of something! You know, lost in thought. I love the contrast between the fine lines of the buildings, and the dark shadows of the curtain on the left. There's a strong pull between stillness and drama. And I wonder what book that is. It’s kind of amazing how artists make these choices that ripple through time. We can feel what he felt then, in a way.