literature

Merel van Slobbe: We have to accept that it will never be possible to see the sky in its original state

Eighteen young Flemish and Dutch authors have taken inspiration from seventeenth-century artefacts from the Rijksmuseum. Looking at these objects, what eureka moments do they see? Merel van Slobbe wrote a poem in response to the painting Girl in a Large Hat, by Caesar Boëtius van Everdingen. ‘you’re the public’s darling’

We have to accept that it will never be possible to see the sky in its original state

girl in a large hat, girl with satin, plums, summer sky
shoulders the colour of orange pulp, girl with the hole in the left breast

  The painting was in reasonably goodcondition, but
  this was obscured by a number of unsightly
  elements. The severely yellowed and irregular layer
  of varnish, the hole in the canvas at the left breast,
  and the restored tear in the sky were the most
  noticeable.

this is how you restore a girl:

  The thick layer of surface dirt was removed from
  both the front and the back, where an
  unprecedented amount of dust, pieces of straw and
  other undesirable detritus was found between the
  canvas and the stretcher.

this is how you restore a girl:

retouch the blue paint of the sky, remove the surface dirt, remember: every step you take is a vote for the person you wish to become, whisper to yourself in the mirror: I’m not afraid anymore, manifest sparkling things, establish a skincare routine of twenty-seven steps that must be performed in the correct order, simplify your workflow in Mailchimp, eat chia seeds, retouch the blue paint of the sky, whisper: I’m not afraid anymore, retouch the blue paint of the sky

  The next step was the removal of the old, yellowed
  varnish with organic solvents. The removal of the
  varnish also, however, revealed the extent of the
  damage, for instance in the blue paint of the sky.

this is how you restore a girl:

polish the sky, the horizon transforms within the frame of a painting, wait until you emerge from the layers of varnish, you’re discovered, satin, plums, summer sky, shoulders turn the colour of orange pulp, brush off your former selves and give yourself a new name, you’re the public’s darling, you cling to an endless eureka eureka eureka

  After the abrasion in the sky had been ‘touched in’,
  the yellowish spots, particularly at the top of the
  sky, were more conspicuous.

this is how you restore a girl:

elongate her silhouette
add yellow concealer for a fresh complexion
add pink concealer to eradicate dark circles
fill in the hole in her left breast
remove yellow patches
remove the fruit’s peel
remove the guilt
remove the sin
this is flesh without flaws

  Efforts were made to suppress this effect with
  retouches, continuing until the eye was no longer
  distracted from the figure in the foreground. We
  have to accept that it will never be possible to see
  the sky in its original state.

polish the summer sky, polish long enough and you’ll find a new version underneath the sun’s hot surface, dig deep enough and you’ll find the premium version of yourself underneath your skin’s lava, somewhere this new version is patiently waiting to be discovered, to become a figure in the foreground, somewhere you’re collecting plums in an endless august august august

Note:

The passages in italics in this poem were taken from Young Woman in a Broad-Brimmed Hat: Painting Technique and Restoration (2011), by Erika Smeenk-Metz, Manja Zeldenrust & Arie Wallert

• Caesar Boëtius van Everdingen
• deBuren
• Merel van Slobbe
• Rijksmuseum