Ivan and Palagna. Illustration to Mykhailo Kotsyubynsky's Tale 'Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors' 1963

Georgyi Yakutovytch made this illustration for Mykhailo Kotsyubynsky's tale using, I imagine, a block of wood and some very sharp tools to carve it. The stark contrast between black and white is powerful, but also, look at the textures! The lines that define Ivan and Palagna are so deliberate, so carefully etched. There's a real sense of weight and volume, isn't there? It feels almost sculptural, like a relief carving come to life on paper. See the way Yakutovytch uses parallel lines to create shadows and depth in the figures' clothing? And the rough, almost chaotic, lines in the background? It's as if the world around them is both supporting and threatening to swallow them whole. I'm reminded a bit of Käthe Kollwitz, especially her woodcut prints. There's that same raw emotion, that same unflinching portrayal of human suffering. But Yakutovytch brings his own unique sensibility to the medium, a kind of earthy, folk-inspired vision. It leaves you with more questions than answers, and that's a good thing. Art is never really finished anyway, right? It's just waiting for us to come along and add our own interpretations to the mix.