Briefkaart aan Jan Ponstijn before 1918

Editor: This is Leo Gestel’s "Briefkaart aan Jan Ponstijn," a small ink drawing on paper from before 1918, currently at the Rijksmuseum. It shows a group of people seated at a table, perhaps dining. The hurried lines give it such an unfinished, almost frantic feel. What’s your take on it? Curator: Frantic, yes, that’s a lovely word for it! I think of it as a visual echo of bustling café life. You see, Gestel wasn't just documenting a dinner; he was capturing a moment in time. A quick impression, a shared glance, a snatched conversation… I find myself wondering what the topic of discussion was. Is it gossip, politics or art that animates them so? What do you think they’re eating? Editor: Maybe something involving those… spherical shapes they are holding. They could be little appetizers. So, the unfinished look - that's deliberate? Curator: Deliberate is a strong word! Let’s say it's intentional in its *in*completeness. Think of it as capturing the essence rather than photographic detail, an impression more real than reality sometimes is. More a sense than a description. But I would love to know… what captures you the most when you look at it? Editor: Probably the character on the left with their alarmed expression. He really sticks out from the others. It is if he's suddenly realized something no one else has. Curator: Ah, yes! Maybe that’s Gestel inviting *us* to consider our own roles as observers. Like we’ve walked in on something secret. Art’s funny like that – it is like glimpsing a world unseen to us previously. It leaves one thinking that there’s more than meets the eye, right? Editor: Definitely! Thanks, that's given me a lot to think about. Curator: My pleasure.