Visitekaartje aan Henriette Wilhelmina van Baak Possibly 1930

This is Honoré Féa’s “Visitekaartje aan Henriette Wilhelmina van Baak”, written in 1930. I imagine Féa sitting at a desk with a fountain pen, his hand moving across the paper. The writing is so full of loops, curves, and lines, that each letter seems to dance on the page. The words, rendered in dark brown ink, are full of personal expression. There is a flow to it, an emotional quality that comes from the hand and the pen moving across the paper. I’m really drawn to the way the lines have a calligraphic quality. It’s like each word is carefully placed, considered, yet the overall effect is fluid, like a stream of consciousness. It makes me think about all the different ways we can communicate and express ourselves. And how something as simple as handwriting can be so incredibly personal and unique. Féa has made this condolence card into something more than just words, but it has an emotional, visual presence.