Landschap met bomen en bebouwing c. 1915 - 1920

Willem Witsen made this drawing with pencil on paper, a landscape with trees and buildings. I think it’s like an echo of a place, a fleeting impression of a scene observed in passing. I can imagine Witsen quickly capturing the main elements – the vertical lines of the trees, the geometric shapes of the buildings, and the broad strokes suggesting the sky or fields. Did he have a certain urgency to preserve a particular moment or feeling? Did he wish to capture the light? The way the lines are scribbled, almost impatiently, suggests an attempt to grasp something before it vanishes. The drawing is so sparse but also rich with possibility. It shows us how much can be communicated with just a few lines and marks. Like Cy Twombly or even Guston, Witsen demonstrates that what is left out is as important as what is included.