Brief aan Philip Zilcken Possibly 1920

Rose Imel wrote this letter to Philip Zilcken, we don't know when. It looks like it's written in ink, so it’s a deeply physical and intimate form of contact. The paper feels like an extension of the hand, bearing the weight of each word, each thought. Looking at this letter, I imagine Imel hunched over a desk, the nib of her pen scratching across the page. What was she thinking as she formed each letter? You can almost feel the rhythm of her thoughts as she poured them onto the page in these handwritten marks. There's a sense of urgency to get the thoughts out there! The words tumble out in this long, continuous cascade of thoughts and ideas, memories and feelings. It reminds me how painting can be a similar process, where one gesture leads to another in an unbroken stream of consciousness. Thinking here of the paintings of Cy Twombly and Joan Mitchell. Painting is a conversation, right? And each painter picks up where the others left off. It's like we’re all passing notes around the studio.