Briefkaart aan Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk before 1919

Editor: Okay, so this is "Briefkaart aan Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk," a mixed-media drawing on paper by Marinus van der Maarel, created sometime before 1919. It's essentially a postcard, and something about the handwriting and the stamp really evokes a sense of faded history. What stands out to you about this piece? Curator: It whispers stories, doesn’t it? More than just delivering a message, this little rectangle of paper offers a peek into a life, a connection. I'm drawn to the way the rigid formality of the pre-printed "BRIEFKAART" clashes with the cursive script. Imagine the hand that held this, penning a quick note, a casual hello to someone. What do you think they might have been writing? Editor: That’s a great question! I wish I could read Dutch script better. I suppose, seeing as it's just a postcard, it might have been fairly banal, daily stuff. Curator: Perhaps. Or maybe it was an invitation, a secret shared. Notice the faded stamp, a portal to a different time. Does it remind you of any contemporary forms of communication? Is anything analogous? Editor: I guess the closest thing would be an email. Quick, cheap. But without the inherent… materiality of something you can hold. Curator: Precisely. The ephemeral versus the tangible. It begs the question: what future stories will our emails whisper? What history are we creating, pixel by pixel, versus pen stroke by pen stroke? What do you think we’ll lose of this materiality by switching over to something totally non physical? Editor: Hmm. I've never thought about my emails as a future historical record. I suppose we'll lose the charm, but gain wider access. Curator: Exactly. It’s a beautiful, yet melancholy thought to see our digital forms as a means of mass and potentially fast distribution for communication but maybe in turn lose the value that history imbues within analogue, ‘fixed in place’ art. Editor: Well, that’s given me something new to ponder today! Thanks!