Ontbijt, provisorisch gedekte tafel in woonvertrek 1915

Carel Nicolaas Storm van 's-Gravesande made this pastel drawing, “Ontbijt, provisorisch gedekte tafel in woonvertrek”, which roughly translates to "Breakfast, a provisional table in the living room," sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. With its soft, muted tones and visible strokes, this piece feels incredibly intimate, like a stolen glance at a quiet morning ritual. I’m really drawn to the way the artist uses the pastel medium to create texture. The strokes are loose and almost scribbled, but when you step back, they coalesce into these recognizable forms: the silverware, the pitcher, the flowers, the books piled up in the background. Look at the way the light catches the pitcher, those little white dashes that give it form. It’s a study in how suggestion can be more powerful than precision. This piece reminds me of some of Bonnard’s interiors, with their similarly hazy and dreamlike atmospheres. Both artists seem to be less concerned with capturing reality than with conveying a feeling, and isn’t that what art is all about?