Gezicht op het Hôtel meublé de Francfort in de rue d'Argout met een straatveegster 1907 - 1911

Henri Manesse’s monochromatic print shows a street sweeper outside a hotel in France. There’s a quiet tension at play in this modest image. I imagine Manesse setting up his easel, feeling the pressure to capture the transient moment. The quick, decisive marks evoke the act of looking, seeing, and trying to depict what’s in front of him. The composition creates a sense of claustrophobia; the buildings seem to lean inward, framing the figure of the sweeper. The marks used to depict the architecture and the figure are very similar – this reminds me of the work of Whistler. You can sense the artist searching for the right mark, the right pressure, to describe both the material solidity of buildings and the fragility of human presence. This image feels like a little stage, and the sweeper is on it performing her mundane task. Artists like Manesse help us see the hidden beauty of everyday life. It's like they are saying, ‘Hey, look at this! Isn't it amazing?’