Gezicht op de achtergevels van panden aan een gracht in Dordrecht c. 1898 - 1900

Editor: This etching, "View of the Rear Facades of Buildings along a Canal in Dordrecht" by Willem Witsen, was created around the turn of the century. The subject is the back of canal houses. I find it both intriguing and a little melancholic in its muted tones and almost claustrophobic composition. What grabs your attention most about this piece? Curator: Oh, it whispers stories, doesn’t it? For me, it's the hidden-away beauty that Witsen captures so well. Think about it – we rarely see the *backs* of these grand canal houses. He’s inviting us into a secret world, a space of laundry lines, kitchen gardens perhaps, where real life happens away from the polished facades facing the streets. Does it strike you as very 'lived in', that quiet reality behind the more imposing facade? Editor: Absolutely, it does! It’s like he peeled back a layer. The detail is amazing! What do you make of the contrast between the dark water and the lighter brick? Curator: I think that tension is central. The water, in all its murky mystery, seems to absorb light and history. While those stoic brick walls, with their slightly askew windows, bear the weight of time. Witsen wasn't just documenting; he was evoking a feeling, a mood. I sense a quiet reverence in it all; a very human one, you could almost be there on the towpath, in the shadows. Wouldn't you agree? Editor: I do. The ordinary becomes extraordinary through his eyes. I am left pondering the unseen lives within these buildings, the everyday moments usually overlooked. Curator: Precisely! Witsen gifts us the poetry of the prosaic; reminds us there's always beauty in the unexpected glimpses of life, doesn't he? I think I shall go search for one of these views in my city...