Schip 1901 - 1907

Editor: Here we have Willem Witsen’s "Schip," likely from sometime between 1901 and 1907. It's an ink sketch, very quick and loose. I’m immediately drawn to the... the precariousness of it. Like the ship might just tip right out of the frame! What do you make of it? Curator: Oh, I adore this! It’s so beautifully raw, isn't it? Witsen captures a fleeting moment, that feeling of slight disorientation you get looking out at the water. The sketchiness... it's like catching a half-remembered dream. I can almost feel the gentle rocking. Do you see how he leaves so much to the imagination? We fill in the details ourselves. It’s less about the specific ship, and more about the feeling of being on the water. And frankly, the feeling that ship could topple is perfect; don’t boats *always* feel like they’re about to topple? Editor: That's a great way to put it! I was so focused on the incompleteness as a kind of technical aspect, I didn't think of it as inviting me into the scene. It's like, he's not just showing us a ship, he’s giving us a sensation. Curator: Exactly! It's like he’s sharing a secret little world with us, one hastily jotted down in a sketchbook. Editor: Well, I’ll definitely be looking at Witsen's sketches differently now. It's like peeking into his personal experiences rather than just seeing studies. Curator: Isn't it wonderful how a simple sketch can be so much more? I am even reminded a bit of the feeling I have looking at Van Gogh’s reed pen drawings. He is so raw!