Twee vogels 1891 - 1941

Leo Gestel made this drawing, Twee vogels, sometime in the early 20th century with a delicate hand. It's just lines on paper, yet it gives the impression of birds in flight above the water. You can imagine Gestel standing, leaning over a table perhaps, the pen in his hand, coaxing these birds into being. Did he begin with the wings, or the heads? Maybe he adjusted their positions a bunch of times, trying to get that feeling of soaring just right. I'm so curious about that top bird; its little head is pointing down, and its wings are stretched out. I can feel that motion, the pull of gravity as it heads towards the sea. Doesn't it make you think about other painters like Matisse or even Picasso? It’s as if the simple act of drawing is a conversation, echoing across time, and across different ways of seeing.