Ballerina's Back 1967

Vilen Barsky made this charcoal drawing, titled 'Ballerina's Back', with a really fascinating approach to mark making. It's all about capturing movement and form, not through precise lines, but through a kind of energetic cloud of smudges, and wandering, tentative lines. I'm so drawn to the texture and surface of this piece. The way the charcoal is applied, sometimes dense and dark, other times a barely-there whisper, creates a sense of depth and airiness. The ballerina’s tutu, for example, is rendered with these frenetic lines, like she’s about to whirl right off the page. It reminds me a bit of Degas, who was also obsessed with ballerinas, but Barsky brings a more raw, almost punk sensibility. With it's ghostly lines and blurred edges, there is no one right way to read it, just possibilities and suggestions.