Silhouettes 1880

"Silhouettes" is a watercolor sketch created by the Belgian artist James Ensor in 1880. The work is known for its loose style of gestural drawing and the use of dark silhouettes against a light background. Ensor's sketches, primarily in black and white, frequently featured crowds and figures in a highly expressive manner. These sketches prefigure the themes and style of Ensor's later works, such as "The Entry of Christ into Brussels" (1888). While the details of the figures are obscured by the silhouettes, their overall composition and gestures suggest a sense of movement and energy. This sketch showcases Ensor's early exploration of expressionism and the dynamism of human figures.