Vogelskelet 1979

Kees Stoop made this print called Vogelskelet, or bird skeleton, using etching, though I'm not sure exactly when. The whole image seems to emerge out of a field of delicate lines. You can sense Stoop feeling his way through the image, as if the lines are being coaxed into existence. The bones float on the right-hand side of the image, almost as if they are suspended mid-air, while on the left a little rectangle shows us a small copse of trees. Down below, there's a bird's head and feathers. It's a masterclass in texture, the kind that only emerges from patient labor. Each mark seems to have been made deliberately and yet the overall effect is surprisingly light, fragile even. Seeing this print makes me think of other Dutch masters of light and shade, like Rembrandt, whose etchings have a similar quality. But maybe it also makes me think about the enduring appeal of drawing itself, with all its fragile beauty.