Wolkenlucht 1891 - 1898

Willem Cornelis Rip rendered this cloudscape in graphite. Rip’s interest in capturing fleeting atmospheric conditions situates him in the Hague School, where artists turned away from romanticized landscapes to focus on the mundane, and the ordinary. Rather than presenting a wide vista, Rip zooms in on the sky, prompting an intimate, almost meditative experience. In its deliberate focus, Wolkenlucht reminds us that the act of looking, and of being, is always tied to a specific point of view. We might consider how class and gender shaped Rip’s vantage point. As a man from a well-to-do family he was afforded certain freedoms and privileges that were not available to others, allowing him to experience and represent the world from a uniquely empowered position. Though modest in scale, it is suggestive in its quietude. In this sketch, Rip asks us to pause and consider the simple grandeur of the sky above.