November 1917

This is 'November' a small woodcut made in 1917 by the Dutch artist Julie de Graag. I imagine de Graag carefully carving away at the block of wood, the smell of the wood dust filling the air. Each groove and line is deliberate, almost meditative. What a process! I feel like her mind was as intricately focused as the pattern in the sunflower's head, each mark coming together to create a single image. There is a tension between the naturalistic sunflower and the simplification of its form. The petals become stylized shapes, the seeds an intricate, almost abstract pattern. I can imagine De Graag, inspired by the work of artists like Mondrian and other early modernists, seeking to capture the essence of the subject. It's a delicate dance between representation and abstraction, and it makes you wonder about the nature of seeing itself.