Kees Stoop made this drawing, ‘Hedges and Conifers,’ using graphite on paper. Graphite, in its essence, is humble stuff – a form of carbon more commonly found in pencils than in high art. Yet, in Stoop's hands, this everyday material takes on a life of its own. Look closely, and you’ll see how the granular texture of the graphite creates a rich and varied surface, capturing the rough and dense quality of foliage. The repeated strokes suggest a meticulous process, each line contributing to the overall impression of depth and form. Stoop coaxes an impressive range of tonal variation from the graphite, creating a composition of subtle, almost monochromatic beauty, and transforming humble materials into art.