Waterpomp bij een huis in Voorburg 1888 - 1934

Willem Adrianus Grondhout made this etching of a water pump near a house in Voorburg. The subtle gradations of tone suggest an iterative process of trial and error. I can imagine Grondhout building up the image bit by bit in the studio, adding and subtracting layers, lines, and textures. Looking at this print, I sympathize with the artist, imagine him outside the house, squinting in the sunlight, and wondering how to get all this texture down on the plate. He must have been thinking hard about the weight and the presence of that pump. The etching offers a quiet and contemplative way of seeing, thinking, and experiencing the world. That small, diagonal slash could be a crack on the wall but it also has the feeling of light catching on a surface, and suggests depth. Etching is about the accumulation of marks and the conversation between artists across time, so that the work might communicate feeling, intention, and meaning.