Vos in monnikspij (Reinaert) omringd door kippen en haan (Cantecleer) Possibly 1909

This print by Bernard Willem Wierink depicts Reynart the Fox in monk's clothing surrounded by chickens and a rooster. It's a simple image of a fox disguised as a monk, perhaps slyly winking, or looking a little guilty surrounded by the chickens and a rooster. I wonder what it was like for Wierink to carve these tiny shapes. The process would have been as much about what he took away as what he left. The rooster, with its feathered tail, really jumps off the page! It reminds me a little of Matisse’s cutouts, how he distilled forms to their essential shapes. What does it mean to wear a costume? What does it mean to camouflage? Maybe it's a comment on appearances versus reality, or the duplicity in human nature. Like a visual riddle, inviting us to decipher its hidden meanings. It feels like a timeless conversation among artists, and an ongoing exploration of how we see and interpret the world.