Brief aan Andries Bonger before 1918

This is a letter by Emile Bernard to Andries Bonger. The ink strokes dance across the page, a flurry of thoughts and emotions captured in swift, decisive marks. Imagine Bernard hunched over his desk, pen in hand, pouring his heart out onto the paper in looping curves. You can almost feel the weight of his words, the urgency of his message. He's writing about death and loss, and I imagine him wrestling with these big themes as he writes. The materiality of the letter, its texture and form, feels so intimate, offering a direct connection to Bernard's inner world. The letter feels like a conversation, an exchange of ideas across time. I see echoes of other painters in his work, other writers and thinkers who have grappled with similar questions. It’s all part of this ongoing creative dialogue, inspiring one another’s artistic expression.