Gezicht op de Binnen-Amstel in Amsterdam c. 1906 - 1907

Willem Witsen made this etching of the Binnen-Amstel in Amsterdam, with incredible detail considering the limitations of the medium. I can just imagine him, hunkered over the plate, carefully etching away at the metal, guided by his memories of the city. You know, when you make an etching, there is a sort of back-and-forth between control and chance. The acid bites into the metal, and you never quite know what you’re going to get. But that’s the beauty of it, right? It’s like a dance between the artist and the materials. It makes me wonder what Witsen felt while creating the image. Was he trying to capture the essence of the city, or was he just enjoying the process of making marks on a surface? The way he captures the light on the water—it's pretty remarkable! It makes me think about Whistler's etchings of Venice, or even some of the earlier Dutch landscape painters. I'm sure they inspired each other. Ultimately, this image is the result of a long conversation about what it means to see and represent the world around us.