Annotaties c. 1915 - 1921

I imagine Willem Witsen making these annotations, maybe with a scratchy pen and ink, in no particular order, the marks all over this page looking almost frantic, like the artist was urgently recording thoughts as they emerged. The page is covered in numbers and calculations, names, dates and maybe even a shopping list! It is hard to know for sure. I sympathize with Witsen here. I can imagine him, perhaps lost in thought or just trying to keep track of things amid the chaos of life! There’s a real sense of flow and energy. The physicality of the writing tool, the texture of the paper – these elements shape our experience and give the work an emotional resonance. Look at the sweeping gesture of the numbers, how it gives a sense of movement and rhythm. It reminds me of Cy Twombly’s scrawled paintings, where writing becomes drawing, and drawing becomes thinking. Artists are always in conversation, inspiring each other across time, and these annotations are part of that ongoing exchange, reminding us that art embraces ambiguity.