Aangemeerd schip in een haven c. 1935 - 1936

Cornelis Vreedenburgh made this sketch of a docked ship in a harbor with pencil on paper. Dominating the composition is the ship's mast, its rigging reaching skyward, a symbol of maritime adventure and trade. The mast, a vertical axis, has been a potent symbol across cultures, representing connections between the earthly and the divine. Think of the maypole, a vestige of pagan rituals, or even the Christian cross, each a variation on this ancient motif. This is related to the axis mundi: like trees, mountains, columns, or ladders. Here, the mast also possesses a melancholic edge. It has a sense of adventure, and the harbor is a place of departure and return, a reminder of human transience and longing for what lies beyond the horizon. The cyclical nature of journeys, the perpetual return to familiar shores after venturing into the unknown, touches something deep within us, an echo of our own life's journey. Thus, the image of the ship, immortalized through Vreedenburgh’s hand, has become a conduit for our shared, deeply felt experiences of exploration.