Brief aan Marisa Quanjer Possibly 1937

Curator: Let’s turn our attention to “Brief aan Marisa Quanjer,” potentially from 1937, held here at the Rijksmuseum. It's a drawing in ink on paper, a personal correspondence, seemingly. Editor: My first impression is intimacy. The handwriting lends such a personal, almost vulnerable, quality. It's less a formal artwork, and more like peering over someone's shoulder as they jot down their thoughts. Curator: Indeed. Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst, though known for his larger, more public works, here gives us a glimpse into a private exchange. The materials, pen and ink on paper, speak to its casual nature, a means of swift communication. It's the texture of thought made visible. Editor: And the structure! Notice the script itself—the careful loops and flourishes, almost calligraphic in places, yet also hasty in others. It's a dance between intention and urgency, which gives a specific rhythm to the visual plane of this brief document. How might this script emphasize the meaning of what’s being expressed, either directly or ironically? Curator: The question, of course, becomes: what is being expressed? Roland Holst clearly had an artistic spirit; in this quick personal note there's more poetry than information perhaps. Editor: Perhaps. To me, the absence of definitive information almost enhances its artistic merit. The imagination fills the gaps, projecting stories onto this delicate framework of ink on paper. This artistic rendering of a letter opens an emotive conversation on the interplay of personal relationships through language. It makes you consider the person. Curator: In the end, we can't help but fill that void, giving the letter its life, in a way continuing the conversation R.N. Roland Holst originally started. Editor: Absolutely, this piece inspires to delve deeper into the silent conversation and decode personal reflections made in ink.