In a Sentimental Mood

This graphite pencil drawing ‘The Hague – 19-03-17’ offers a cubist view on a specific bridge. It’s the one over the Hooigracht in The Hague, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands. Not often do I cross it except when coming from the Dennenweg cycling home. More than 20 years ago I frequently visited café ‘Hathor’. The terrace with a view on the water can be still seen partially on the left of the drawing. That was when I was a young man still, being a lawyer with office on the Koninginnegracht. Nowadays I have my Friday afternoon drinks with students in my studio. Sometimes I bike through Den Haag looking for artistic motifs. I guess I was in a sentimental mood when I took the reference picture for this one.

Arch Structures

However, the reflection of the bridge in the water also was the reason I stopped at the very spot. Occasionally you take a picture on a whim really, only to find out later why you took it. In fact, much later I suddenly saw what attracted to me. These are the arch structures counterbalancing all things straight in the buildings. Always on the look for contrasts I’d say but that is what artists like me are after. Next to these there were some lovely tree branches I could exploit in a curved way as well. They are positioned in a triangular way contrasting horizontally and vertically placed structures. Like in a previous drawing ‘Oss – 05-01-17’ I chose to make the light very plausible. Surely this will help the viewer to interpret the scenery in spite of the abstraction of it all.

Graphite pencil drawing (Pentel 0.5 mm, 3B) on Canson Bristol paper (21 x 29.7 x 0.1 cm – A4 format)

Artist: Corné Akkers

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