Brug c. 1887 - 1920

Willem Witsen made this drawing of a bridge, ‘Brug,’ with pencil on paper. Look at these lines! The artist is mapping a place, maybe trying to capture the feeling of being in the middle of it all. It is almost like Witsen is thinking with his pencil. I wonder what time of day it was, what sounds he could hear. What was on his mind when he was making these marks. I think of Morandi, another artist known for his drawings. They both seemed to use drawing as a kind of meditation. Each stroke here, the smudges, the scribbles, it is all about touch. I love how these simple strokes create a whole world. And I think that's what art is all about, isn't it? Taking something ordinary and turning it into something extraordinary, one little mark at a time.