Sitting girl with hat c. 1905 - 1910

Fritz von Uhde made this drawing of a seated girl with a hat, sometime in the late 19th or early 20th century. It’s all silvery grays, softly smudged charcoal, full of gentle light. I can imagine Uhde sketching away, trying to capture the fleeting, in-between moments. The girl seems momentarily still, caught in thought. Look at the subtle shading around her eyes, giving her face depth and character. You get a sense of her inner world, like she's got a lot on her mind. It reminds me of other artists who captured everyday life with such tenderness, like Degas or Manet. But Uhde brings his own kind of quiet intimacy. I like the casualness of it all, the feeling that we're just catching a glimpse of a private moment. It feels very modern, despite being over a hundred years old.