Landschap c. 1901 - 1927

Johan Antonie de Jonge made this landscape drawing with graphite, maybe as a study, or perhaps as an artwork in its own right. Look at how the marks accumulate, building up the image with a kind of feverish intensity. I can imagine De Jonge outside, squinting and sweating in the Dutch light, quickly trying to capture the landscape in front of him. The tree on the left has been made with very dark marks, grounding the work. And then beyond it, there is a kind of ethereal lightness. Look how the marks become more sparse, more tentative. Does this give a feeling of space, recession, and air? Thinking about drawing, and how simple the materials are – pencil and paper – and yet, what potential they have. Drawing is a form of thinking, a way of seeing, and a means of feeling. What a privilege to witness such a personal moment from an artist who has now passed.