Kopf Erna mit kurzem Haar 1912

This is Ernst Ludwig Kirchner’s “Kopf Erna mit kurzem Haar," which translates to "Head of Erna with Short Hair," and it's housed in the Städel Museum. Look at how Kirchner used these bold, rough strokes to capture Erna's likeness. You can almost feel the energy of the moment he made it. The marks are so immediate, it’s like he’s wrestling with the image, trying to pull out her essence. The short hair gives her a modern, almost defiant look, don't you think? I wonder what he was thinking as he made this? What was their relationship? Was he trying to capture her inner thoughts as much as her physical appearance? It's like he’s inviting us into a conversation, not just about who she is, but about how we see each other. Kirchner, like many artists, was part of a community, reacting to and building upon what others were doing. We are all, as artists, in an ongoing conversation, inspiring each other's creativity across time.