Bospad met berken 1931

This image shows a forest path with birch trees, made by Simon Moulijn, but I'm not sure exactly when. Look at the density of tiny marks that create the overall image. It’s like a meditation on texture. I can imagine the artist, totally focused, patiently building up the image one tiny mark at a time. I’m sympathetic to how Moulijn seems to have just relished creating subtle tonal shifts. I feel like I’m there, walking on that path, everything is so still. You know, the way the air feels heavy before a storm? It’s all about the details—the way the light catches the birch bark, the subtle shadows in the undergrowth. I am reminded of other painters that work in black and white like this. It's almost like the absence of colour pushes you to see other stuff, you know? These artists are all in conversation, taking cues from each other, riffing on the same themes. For me, painting is like that: it’s a constant back-and-forth, a game of call and response across time.