Boer melkt een koe 1892 - 1940

Henri Verstijnen made this ink drawing of a farmer milking a cow; we don't know exactly when. It's a humble scene, but the lines are so confident, so sure. See how Verstijnen uses the ink to create areas of solid black, balanced by delicate, scratchy lines that suggest texture and light. Look at the cow's side—those bold black shapes are balanced by the more scribbled lines of the grass. The simplicity of the black ink is deceptive because Verstijnen coaxes so much detail from it. The way he draws the grass, for example, it almost feels like you can hear the quiet sounds of the countryside. It reminds me a bit of Van Gogh's drawings, not in style, but in the way that a simple subject can become so compelling through the artist's touch. Art’s not just about what you see, but how you see it. And sometimes, the simplest images offer the most profound insights.