Figure Studies 1943

This page of figure studies was likely made by Milton Avery in the heat of the moment, in pencil, on a sketch pad. I can imagine him sitting somewhere – maybe by the beach – and quickly capturing these figures as they move around. It’s fascinating to see how Avery captures the essence of a pose with just a few lines. Look at the figure on the left, casually holding a fishing rod. You can almost feel the tension in the line as it extends out, mimicking the cast of the line. There’s also something so immediate and personal about sketches, like seeing an artist’s unfiltered thought process. Avery was someone who wasn’t afraid to experiment and reduce things to their simplest forms, something you see in the work of his friends Rothko and Gottlieb. These sketches remind us that art isn’t always about perfection, it’s about seeing and feeling.