Brief aan Philip Zilcken before 1918

This is a letter, Brief aan Philip Zilcken, by Jo Geul. It's writing of the kind that makes you think about how it came into being, slowly, carefully, with intent. I feel the weight of the pen in the artist’s hand. I see the even pressure with which they make their marks, and it makes me think about how this process shifts and emerges through trial, error, and intuition. What was Geul thinking as they wrote? It’s as if each word were carefully constructed, each phrase intentionally placed on the page. There is no indication as to when it was made, but the ink is faded in parts, as if the paper has been handled frequently. The hand-written script is like a painting—you can almost feel Geul’s breathing as they carefully composed each word. Ultimately, all artists are in an ongoing conversation and exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. Each mark is like a brushstroke, and as a whole it conveys the ambiguity and uncertainty of our thoughts in all their complex forms.