Drie schapen 1906 - 1945

Reijer Stolk made this sketch of three sheep, simply called "Drie Schapen," sometime before 1945. It's all in the suggestive power of line, isn't it? The pencil marks are so light and fleeting, you can almost feel the sheep moving, grazing. It's like Stolk captured a momentary glimpse of them, a quick impression dashed off in a field somewhere. Look at the way he uses the line to suggest the weight of their bodies, the woolly texture. It's not about detail; it's about essence. You get a sense of a real connection to the animal, like he's really looking, like he sees the sheep. There's something about the simplicity, that reminds me of late drawings by Van Gogh. Both artists manage to find a kind of humble beauty in the everyday. Art is about that exchange; a conversation that never really ends.