Trommelaar 1900 - 1940

Patricq Kroon made this small, monochromatic drawing, Trommelaar, probably with ink on paper. I'm picturing him hunched over the page, meticulously hatching the shadows of the drummer's form. You can see the cross-hatching creating a sense of depth, but what interests me is the expressiveness. I wonder if Kroon felt like he was capturing a specific person or making a more archetypal figure. Was he interested in caricature? Look at the drummer's bulbous cheeks and knowing eyes. I can almost hear the boom of the drum and sense the energy of a parade or procession. I think he’s having fun here. Like many artists, Kroon creates a world that is not just representational, but felt, remembered, and imagined. And that’s what makes looking at art so exciting, it’s like a conversation across time.