Zuiderzeewerk 1932

This is Zuiderzeewerk, made with pen and ink by Johan Hendrik van Mastenbroek. Look at the marks. See how they build up the image? It’s not about perfection, it’s about the process. The texture is key. The ink creates a gritty, almost tactile feel, especially in the water and the plumes of smoke. Check out the crane on the right—the way Mastenbroek uses short, scribbly lines to define its form, it's almost like he’s sketching his way through the idea of a crane rather than drawing a photorealistic version. It's like a dance between observation and imagination. That one mark becomes part of a much bigger story. Mastenbroek reminds me a little of Joseph Pennell, who also loved to capture industrial scenes. Both artists see the beauty in these human-made behemoths. It’s a reminder that art is always in conversation, picking up on threads from the past while pushing into new territory. There’s always more than one way to see things, and that’s the beauty of it.