Drie paarden 1891 - 1941

Leo Gestel made this drawing of three horses on paper with graphite. I can imagine him standing there, charcoal in hand, quickly capturing the essence of these animals. The marks are so direct, confident, and economical; just a few lines, really, that suggest the weight and form of the horses. It’s like he's not just drawing what he sees but what he knows about horses. That larger horse at the top is so solid and grounded, while the two smaller ones seem almost like echoes, fainter memories of the same subject. It reminds me of Degas' horses—that same sense of movement and energy captured with minimal means. Gestel is in conversation with other artists, wrestling with similar questions about how to represent form and life. There’s a real physicality here, in the way the charcoal meets the paper, a kind of dance between the artist and his subject.