Bloemstengels c. 1970

Kees Stoop made this print called "Bloemstengels" – that's "Flower Stems" in Dutch – and it’s like he’s showing us how to really *look* at nature. It’s all about lines, etched deep into the plate, making these scratchy, almost prickly flower stems. The dark ink against the white paper, it's stark, but look closer. See how each line has its own wobble? It's like Stoop is letting the metal do its thing, embracing the happy accidents. The stems and blooms are crowded, almost claustrophobic, and that one stem, right in the center, it's like the spine of the whole piece. Thick and strong, anchoring everything. You could be reminded of other artists who loved a scratchy line, like maybe Paula Rego, or even some of those German Expressionist woodcuts. But Stoop’s got his own thing going on. It’s a reminder that art’s just a conversation, a way of seeing and showing, that never really ends.