Agent confisqueert een boek van een boekhandelaar 1904

This anonymous print, probably made with lithography, shows a policeman confiscating a book from a bookseller. What grabs me is the graphic quality - the bold lines and stark contrast. There’s this real push and pull between the figures, created by the hatching of the lines on the bookseller’s coat, but then a solid fill where the policeman stands. The text, “Liebhaber Künste” is great too - I love the way the letters sit on the page, and that the composition puts it right in the centre ground, with an almost abstract figure behind it. I'm drawn to the policeman's sword, how it cuts through the space, and how that simple shape creates this tension. It makes me think of George Grosz - that kind of satirical edge, but with a rougher, more immediate feel, all those nervous lines and contrasting areas of tone. It's not about perfection, but about the energy of the mark. It reminds me that art is always a conversation, a back-and-forth, and never just one voice shouting.