Second Book: Daphnis and Chloe Sacrificing a Crowned Goat (Daphnis et Chloe emmenant le bouc, chef du troupeau, pour le sacrifier a Pan) Possibly 1937

Aristide Maillol made this illustration, Second Book: Daphnis and Chloe Sacrificing a Crowned Goat, with a kind of relaxed, meandering line that seems to be searching for form. It's like he's thinking through the drawing, letting the process itself guide the image. The sienna lines on the page have this quality of ease to them, and there's a really appealing flatness to the picture, like a fresco. Look at the way the line weight stays consistent throughout, giving everything an equal presence, from the figures to the goat they're leading to sacrifice. It's interesting how Maillol doesn't really commit to defining the space, leaving it ambiguous. It all contributes to the dreamy atmosphere of the image. You can see a similar approach in the work of Puvis de Chavannes, especially in the way he simplifies form and flattens space. Ultimately, it reminds you that art is a conversation across time.