Cort van de Linden als kwakzalver Possibly 1918

Patricq Kroon made this drawing of Cort van de Linden as a quack in pen and ink. You know, sometimes the looseness of a sketch holds so much more energy than a finished painting. Here, the slightly frantic marks of the pen create a scene that’s both funny and a little unsettling. Notice how the hatching defines the forms, but also feels so immediate, like he was capturing a fleeting thought. There's a sense of urgency in the way Kroon's laid down these lines, especially around the figure’s face and hands. It’s like he’s saying, “This is how it is, quick, before it changes." There's something about the way the bottles and jars are labeled – Aqua Dolce, Eau de Carmen, Wonder Zalf – it reminds me of Daumier’s satirical lithographs, that blend of social critique and raw, gestural mark-making. The sketchy, unfinished quality leaves space for your own imagination. It's not about perfection, it's about the process, the energy, the messy vitality of a thought taking shape.