Blad met annotaties 1884 - 1927

This annotated sheet, by Johan Antonie de Jonge, is all about the process. You can see the workings-out, the provisional notations, and the beginnings of something. I’m drawn to the texture of the paper, that creamy, off-white surface, which is both a ground and a field. It feels absorbent and responsive, like it wants to soak up those faint, elegant, grey lines, as though they’re naturally seeping in. The annotations on the side seem a bit like a shopping list, but without the rigorous crossing-off: just notes for future, possible projects. That little brown spot in the centre of the page could be a mistake, a blot, or a deliberate mark – I love that ambiguity. It reminds me that art is an ongoing conversation, a process of trial and error, and that the most interesting works are often those that embrace ambiguity and multiple interpretations. Think of Cy Twombly's scribbled notations, and the unfinished quality that he shared with De Jonge.