Boer met drie ploegende paarden 1904

Gerrit Haverkamp made this artwork, Boer met drie ploegende paarden, using engraving. The dark ink and small scale almost gives the impression of a photograph. It might have come into being through careful strokes and close observation. I sympathize with Haverkamp and imagine what it might have been like to make this work. Maybe he lived in the countryside himself and wanted to represent what was around him. The picture is a complex of lines that evoke the field and the sky. The horses and farmer seem to blend into their surroundings. Haverkamp’s marks almost vibrate with energy. Even though it’s small, it feels big, like you could walk right into it. The way that Haverkamp represents the horses is particularly striking to me. They communicate a feeling and intention. I bet he was in conversation with a lot of other artists who were interested in rural life. Art doesn’t happen in a vacuum. It is an exchange of ideas across time, and artists inspire one another’s creativity. Painting can be a form of embodied expression. It embraces ambiguity and uncertainty. So while I may feel one thing when I look at this work, you might feel something entirely different.