Vrouwen 1890 - 1931

Willem Bastiaan Tholen drew 'Vrouwen' with graphite on paper. What I love about a drawing like this is how immediate it feels, a raw outpouring of observations, just pure process. There’s something so casual about the marks, a real economy of line. Look how he captures the essence of these figures with just a few strokes. The texture of the paper becomes part of the image, giving it a tactile quality, like you could reach out and feel the grain. The way the lines vary in pressure and thickness gives the figures volume and weight. There’s one figure in the middle, leaning over something, maybe a table. The lines are scratchy and uncertain, but they perfectly convey the angle of her body and the effort she's making. It reminds me a little of Paula Modersohn-Becker’s drawings, that same focus on the everyday and the quick, gestural mark. It's like we're glimpsing a moment in time, a fleeting observation captured with honesty and grace.