Brief aan Willem Bogtman 1892 - 1938

Curator: We're looking at "Brief aan Willem Bogtman" a handwritten letter penned by Richard Nicolaüs Roland Holst, somewhere between 1892 and 1938. It's currently housed in the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first impression is how intimate it feels. It's like reading someone's private thoughts—very raw, like the handwriting is almost spilling the secrets contained inside. Curator: The letter offers insights into Roland Holst's views on art, architecture and possibly even critiques of the period's aesthetics. Consider his place within the Dutch Symbolist movement— a period defined by interest in interior psychological experience. Holst’s letter then is more than simply personal. It’s an historical object, revealing artistic and intellectual contexts. Editor: Absolutely. And that frantic handwriting makes it even more compelling; you feel his urgent desire to communicate. Look at how some letters bleed into each other – as if words can hardly contain whatever is being said here. Was Bogtman, I wonder, open to what he has to say? Curator: I’m intrigued by the line about "Tonisch houdiger is dan her glasraam". The meaning is partly lost to us but context suggests an active attempt at redefining aesthetics—rejecting formalism for something with more enduring weight and character. We see this reflected by the simplicity of the artwork itself! Editor: To me, it feels deeply emotional, perhaps a little melancholic? Almost as though he were searching for something beyond just architectural principles; something more human. He writes 'my neur is in a kiwnet' – it is about so much more than art… Curator: Precisely, by analyzing its context, it invites us into conversations concerning the very role of art and creativity in individual and cultural identities during a transformative period of European thought. It reminds us that these seemingly simple acts – handwriting letters—can represent significant turning points both individually and collectively. Editor: Looking closer now I also pick up, not only Roland Holst himself within these strokes but rather how he captures humanity itself - so poignant! A small rectangular portal which connects through time – magical almost really...