Mannen met hoeden c. 1930

Carel Adolph Lion Cachet made this drawing, "Mannen met hoeden," with pen and ink, I imagine quickly. The drawing is all about capturing a fleeting moment, the process laid bare for us to see. The marks are raw, unedited, and full of energy. You can see in the man in the center, how the details of his face and uniform are suggested with just a few lines, but the suggestion is enough. Cachet’s line has a life of its own, wandering and searching, sometimes finding its way into a recognizable form, other times just hovering on the surface. Look at the way the hat on the left is rendered, it's not quite right, but that's what makes it interesting. He shows that the essence of artmaking is not about perfection, but about the messy, unpredictable process of trying to capture the world around us. It makes me think of Daumier, with the way he captured a moment of real life with such gestural economy, just a few lines and smudges, and it is full of life.