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Carel Willink

The Clock, 1921

The Clock is one of Carel Willink’s (1900-1983) earliest works. While studying at the art academy in the 1920s, he experimented with various modern styles: ‘After every two, three or four canvasses, I changed direction’. The Clock shows elements of Futurism, which – as the same suggests – was focuse ... d on the future: the movement glorified technological progress, speed, dynamism and energy. Willink captures this here by depicting the pendulum of the clock five times next to each other, like in a comic. Early in his career, Willink regularly made abstract works and illustrations. They were not everyone’s cup of tea. It also didn’t appeal to E. du Perron (1899-1940), an influential poet and friend of Willink, who recalled the former once saying to him: ‘You really should quit messing around with that abstract stuff. Just make a painting of what you see – that’s crazy enough’. Partly influenced by his author friend, Willink started to make more realistic works.
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Artist
Carel Willink
Title
The Clock
Year
1921
Technique
Oil on panel
Size
50 x 35 cm (h x w)
Type of object
Painting
Copyright
© Pictoright/Sylvia Willink

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