Twee bloemen 1891 - 1941

Leo Gestel made this drawing, "Twee bloemen," with pen and ink. The palette here is so reduced, so simple, really letting those bold, graphic lines do all the talking. It’s like he’s stripping away the excess, getting down to the core of the flower-ness of these blooms. I love how the ink sits on the paper, a bit raised, giving it a subtle texture you can almost feel. Gestel isn't trying to trick you into thinking this is real life; it's all about the shapes, the forms, the way the black ink pops against the white ground. Look at the flower on the left, the way the circles fill the center. It's not just decoration; it’s like a little universe contained within the bloom. This reminds me a little bit of some of Stuart Davis’s pared down compositional drawings. It's a celebration of reduction and finding the extraordinary in the ordinary. Gestel invites us to see the world with fresh eyes, to find beauty in the simplest of forms.