Ships in Full Sail with Small Boats n.d.

Curator: Before us is "Ships in Full Sail with Small Boats," a drawing of undetermined date by Willem van de Velde the Younger, housed here at the Art Institute of Chicago. What’s your initial impression? Editor: It feels almost ghostly. The delicacy of the lines, the muted ink – there’s a dreamlike quality. I’m drawn to the craftsmanship, seeing evidence of process; it is just beautiful on its own merits. Curator: The drawing exemplifies van de Velde’s mastery of line and composition. Note the way he uses subtle gradations of ink and chalk to evoke depth and atmosphere. Semiotically, the ships become symbols of trade, power, exploration. Editor: Yes, but those ships were also workplaces. I find myself wondering about the unseen laborers who would have been working at oar or rigging, in the face of constant exposure to the elements, about the ships and watercraft as extensions of labor and commerce in early modernity. Curator: An important point, however the sparseness of the scene adds to its sense of formal restraint, reducing all these ideas to the purity of form. Editor: Restraint, perhaps, or limited by materials to create a final product on this paper surface. This ink must have been costly, carefully rationed, and even home-produced or traded for. Curator: Ultimately, what makes this piece compelling is the artist’s skillful rendering of light and space. The subtle use of line, and ink create depth, almost as if light were emanating from the page itself. Editor: And thinking about that ink some more, what are the environmental impacts of sailing and maritime exploration at this period? From shipbuilding to trade networks. Those faint traces are heavy in social consequences, too. Curator: A broader frame of thought, but by appreciating how such form delivers so much from so little means, this vista’s power continues to echo across eras. Editor: Right. When you start unpacking this drawing, all the hands involved, it shows you just how complicated the art-making landscape has always been.