Geen gas 1944

Erkelens made this small etching, titled 'Geen gas'—which means 'No gas'—using fine, delicate lines. You can see how the stove comes into being, shifting and emerging, through trial, error, and intuition. I sympathize with Erkelens, imagining what it might have been like to create this work, thinking about the material aspects like texture, color, surface, and the physicality of the medium. The etching technique is so fragile and precise that it seems almost like a meditation. I wonder, were they thinking about something larger while they were so intently working on something so small? It reminds me that artists are always in an ongoing conversation and exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. Printmaking offers a form of expression that embraces ambiguity and uncertainty, allowing for multiple interpretations.