Ontwerpen voor een stoel 1908

This drawing of chair designs was made by Carel Adolph Lion Cachet, though I don't know exactly when or with what kind of pencil. But look at that loose, searching line! It's all about the process, right? You can see the artist thinking, erasing, reconsidering, as they move across the page. The paper has a beautiful, aged quality. There's a definite physicality to the medium. The graphite is dry and a little scratchy, leaving a trail of grey grit on the surface. The marks are tentative but precise, with each line carefully placed to define the form of the chair. It’s like the ghost of a chair, not quite there, but full of potential. The way the artist renders the ornamentation on one of the chairs in particular; it’s really lovely. This reminds me a little of Matisse's line drawings, that same sense of capturing the essence of a form with the fewest possible strokes. Ultimately, art is an ongoing conversation, an exchange of ideas across time, embracing the multiple interpretations.