Tower Bridge I 1967

Editor: Here we have Oskar Kokoschka's "Tower Bridge I," a drawing on paper from 1967, housed at the Tate. It has a wonderfully unfinished quality, almost ghostly. What strikes you about this piece? Curator: It feels like a memory, doesn’t it? A fleeting impression of London. The sketchiness emphasizes that feeling of impermanence. Look at how the lines vibrate with energy, not trying to capture a precise likeness, but rather the essence of the place. What do you think he’s trying to convey? Editor: Maybe the constant flux of a city, always changing, never still? Curator: Exactly! It’s a city that lives and breathes. Did you notice the slight distortion, the almost dreamlike quality? It invites us to experience London not just as a location, but as a feeling. Editor: It’s interesting to consider how a sketch can capture so much. It's more than just a picture of a bridge. Curator: Precisely! It's a whisper of a city.