Studie af profil 1919

This pencil and ink drawing called, ‘Studie af profil’, was made by Niels Larsen Stevns. It's a good example of art as a process, where the artist is thinking through making. I love the raw quality of the marks, and the layering of the pencil, which creates depth and texture. The inscription, ‘sode sode’, is intriguing. It is a beautiful line. The artist is capturing something in the moment, as if they are making notes to themselves about an experience. The scratchy lines and transparent washes give the piece an ethereal quality. It feels like a memory or a dreamscape. It reminds me of Cy Twombly’s drawings, in the way it embraces imperfection and the beauty of the unfinished. Both artists seem to be searching for something beyond representation, and I think that's interesting. Art is always a conversation with the past, present, and future.