Smidse met vuur (Jan) Possibly 1906 - 1909

Willem Witsen made this energetic drawing with charcoal. I can imagine Witsen standing there, probably close to the heat, quickly capturing the scene with bold strokes. The dark smudges and the rough lines – they’re not just describing shapes, they’re also about the feeling, the intensity of the moment. I wonder what he was thinking about as he made it. Maybe he was intrigued by the contrast between the dark interior and the bright sparks, or maybe he was just drawn to the hard work of the blacksmith. I feel his hand moving, trying to work out where to lay the thickest parts of the charcoal to evoke the man at work. It reminds me of other artists who’ve tried to capture everyday life, like Millet or Courbet, but with Witsen, there’s this added layer of immediacy, of something seen and felt right there and then. Painting is about that kind of exchange, about seeing and feeling the world, and then trying to translate it through marks and gestures onto a surface. Artists respond to one another across time, inspiring a continuous flow of creative energy.