Curatorial notes
This landscape drawing was made by Willem Cornelis Rip, maybe en plein air, in a sketchbook. Look at the cross-hatching, like a blizzard of tiny lines. It's not just about representation; it’s about the pure joy of mark-making. I love the way Rip uses a simple graphite pencil to create such atmospheric depth. You can almost feel the wind and the vastness of the landscape through the dark, smudgy horizon line. Notice how the marks become more frenzied towards the bottom, heavier and more urgent, before dissolving into an almost empty space above, so light and airy. It reminds me of Cy Twombly's drawings, but with a grounded, earthy feel. It’s like Rip is saying, "Here’s what I saw, but more importantly, here’s what I felt," like an abstract poem written with a pencil. It’s a reminder that art doesn't always need to shout, sometimes the quietest voices resonate the most.
