Drie paarden 1891 - 1941

Leo Gestel made this drawing of three horses with chalk, or maybe charcoal – can you tell? Look at the way the marks build up, dark and smudgy, like he was feeling his way into the subject. I wonder what Gestel was thinking about? Maybe he was interested in how the forms of the horses overlap and create a sense of depth. He's using only a few lines to suggest the animals' weight and musculature. The horses seem huddled, their forms merging into one another. I keep thinking about how it feels to draw from life, trying to capture the essence of something, not just the surface appearance. It reminds me a little of Franz Marc, the way he painted animals with such intensity and feeling. Artists are always building on what came before, right? Gestel’s drawing feels like a sketch, a quick study, but it has its own kind of energy and presence, and leaves a lot to the imagination.