Antwerpen 1922

Henri Braakensiek created this print, "Antwerpen," around 1891. Look at the density of marks! It’s like he’s feeling out the form of the boats and buildings, letting them emerge gradually from the cross hatching. I love how the texture of the paper becomes part of the image. The thin lines of the etching almost disappear into it, creating a ghostly, ephemeral feel. See how Braakensiek uses these etched lines to define the rigging of the ship? They remind me of how Giacometti would build up a figure with layers of delicate, almost hesitant lines. There’s a similar sense of searching and not quite resolving the form. It makes me think about art as a conversation across time, each artist building on what came before, finding new ways to express the same fundamental human experiences.