Gezicht op de Slatuinen in Amsterdam 1892 - 1928

Johannes Löhr etched this view of the Slatuinen in Amsterdam, a dance of lines creating a landscape filled with industry and nature. The artwork emerges through a meticulous process of scratching into metal, where the artist's hand coaxes the scene into being, shifting between intention and chance. You know, I wonder what Löhr was thinking, etching those gasworks belching smoke against a fluffy sky. I imagine him balancing the desire to document with the need to find beauty in a changing world. Look at the surface, how the thin lines create a complex texture, a tight harmony of light and shadow. The marks form the shapes, defining the fields and buildings with such precision, yet there’s also an atmospheric haze, blurring the edges. There’s a dialogue happening here, a kind of call and response between artists across time. Löhr, etching his world, speaks to Rembrandt, to Whistler, to all of us who try to capture the world with line and form. And that’s the beauty of it, isn't it? This ongoing conversation, this exploration of seeing.