Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1923

Alphonse Stengelin made this pen and ink drawing, "Brief aan Philip Zilcken," and it’s so full of gentle marks. I can just imagine him there with his pen, carefully building up the image of this sheep, line by line, with so much care. You get the sense that the artist really looked, paused, and considered each line. I wonder if he was thinking about the recipient, Phillip Zilcken, as he was making it. What were they to each other? The drawing is so delicate, the lines so fine, and there’s a real sense of the animal's wooly texture. A single gesture communicates so much feeling, like a kind of embodied expression. It makes me think of other artist friends I have, and the ongoing conversation we have through our work. Each piece is a new way of seeing, thinking, and experiencing the world. I wonder what Philip Zilcken made of it all?