Haard met opengewerkte naturalistische motieven c. 1900 - 1915

This is Theo Nieuwenhuis’ fireback with open, naturalistic motifs, made from iron, probably around the turn of the 20th century. I love how the making process is so present in the piece. You can almost feel the artist carefully cutting out these botanical patterns. It's like a dance between control and letting the material speak. The iron has this beautiful, aged patina, and you can see the texture and the way it was worked. The shapes are precise, but the surface tells a story of time and touch. Check out the little flowers and leaves. Each one is slightly different, giving the piece a real sense of life. There's something honest about the materiality. It reminds me of the work of some of the early craft artists like William Morris, but Nieuwenhuis brings his own sensibility to the naturalistic style. Art is just an ongoing dialogue.