Gezicht 1914

Editor: This is Willem Witsen's 1914 pencil drawing, "Gezicht," currently held at the Rijksmuseum. It’s a striking image, a sort of ghostly, incomplete face emerges from the page. What story do you think this drawing is trying to tell? Curator: What immediately strikes me is the context. This work was created in 1914, the very beginning of the First World War. The fragmented nature of the face, the incompleteness, could be seen as a reflection of the fractured identity of a generation facing unprecedented global conflict. How do you see the geometric and distorted rendering of the face in relation to that time period? Editor: I hadn’t considered the wartime context. That makes me think about the psychological impact of the war, how it might have manifested in art. Curator: Precisely! And considering the portrait genre, this deviates significantly from traditional, idealized depictions. The lack of clear features and the sense of anonymity invite questions about representation, especially within the societal pressures of the time. What kind of statements could Witsen be making by deliberately obscuring identity? Editor: So, rather than a specific individual, it represents a collective experience of loss and disorientation? Curator: It could be interpreted that way, certainly. Witsen, by foregoing traditional portraiture norms, may be commenting on the breakdown of societal structures and the uncertainty of individual and collective identity in the face of such upheaval. It invites us to reflect on the faces, the untold stories, affected by conflict, even now. Editor: That gives me a lot to think about. It’s amazing how a seemingly simple drawing can reveal such complex layers of meaning. Curator: Indeed. And that is the power of art - it acts as a mirror, reflecting both the artist’s perspective and the society they inhabit. I will remember to never view portraits the same.