Gezicht onder een brug met twee roeiboten c. 1914 - 1919

Willem Witsen made this print of a view under a bridge with two rowboats, using etching techniques. It's all about the push and pull of light here, isn't it? There's something so satisfying about how Witsen captures the reflections on the water, those flickering lines that almost dissolve into abstraction. It's like he's not just showing us a scene, but also the way light itself moves and dances. Notice how he uses the dark, solid forms of the bridge to frame the shimmering water, creating this incredible contrast. And those tiny boats, nestled in the shadows, they feel so quiet and still compared to the active surface of the water. It makes me think about the way Whistler used tone and atmosphere, that same sense of quiet contemplation and the beauty in everyday scenes. There’s a conversation happening here about seeing and feeling, more than just depicting.