Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1905

Carel de Wild penned this letter to Philip Zilcken, probably with ink on paper. The strokes here are direct, confident, almost like the work of an action painter, but instead of colors, it's all shades of ink bleeding into paper. I am drawn to the way the letters create a texture, a field of marks, with the loops and tails of the script forming a kind of abstract landscape. It's so physical, you know? You can almost feel the pressure of the pen on the page, the way the ink pools in some areas and fades in others. The flourishes in the signature, particularly, seem like the final brushstrokes in a painting. It’s a bit like Cy Twombly, but with words instead of scribbles. I like to think of this letter as a reminder that art isn't just about pretty pictures or grand statements. Sometimes, it's about the simple act of making a mark, of leaving a trace of yourself on the world, or writing to a friend.