Twee vliegende duiven boven de zee

Leo Gestel made this drawing of two flying doves above the sea, in graphite, on paper. It's a sketch, so you can really see the process, the way he’s mapped it out. I like the scratchy feel of the graphite. It’s kind of rough and unfinished. Look at the doves, the pencil lines are dense, almost scribbled, suggesting the texture of feathers, the movement of the wind. There's a kind of energy in this messiness, you know? And then there are the waves underneath, just these simple, looping lines. It's like he's captured the essence of the sea with just a few strokes. Gestel reminds me of Marsden Hartley, actually. Both artists had a way of finding something profound in the everyday. And both are fond of the kind of ambiguity that lets you bring your own stuff to the table. We see what we want to see. Isn't art great?