Staande vrouw, op de rug gezien 1915

This woodcut, *Standing Woman, Seen from the Back*, was made by Reijer Stolk, sometime before 1945. The stark contrast of black and white feels so immediate, like a snapshot of a moment. I'm thinking about how Stolk chiseled away at the wood, each line a deliberate act. The way the figure is positioned, back to us, invites a sense of introspection. What’s she thinking? Is she alone? I wonder about Stolk, too. What was he trying to capture? The intimacy of a private moment? Or something more universal about vulnerability and the gaze? That patterned wallpaper is like a puzzle, a texture that flattens and deepens the space all at once. There are echoes of German Expressionism in this piece, that same intensity and raw emotion. It's like Stolk is in conversation with artists from another time, another place, all through the language of line and form.