Untitled 

Editor: This unnamed portrait by Tsuguharu Foujita, done with ink on paper, feels surprisingly intimate. I'm struck by the delicate lines and the soft shading. What can you tell me about this drawing? Curator: Consider the materials: ink, paper. Relatively inexpensive and readily available, right? Foujita often employed such accessible means, defying the art world's obsession with oil paints and precious materials. What impact do you think that had, culturally? Editor: Well, maybe it democratized the art-making process? More people could potentially engage with art using those everyday supplies? Curator: Exactly! Foujita challenges the hierarchy between high art and craft, making it more approachable, dismantling elitist barriers through his artistic choices. Also, the drawing style feels influenced by printmaking— a technique also rooted in the potential for mass production and wider consumption. The fine lines could mimic the marks of an etching needle, couldn't they? Editor: Yes, I see the resemblance. It is interesting how his process alludes to art being produced on a larger scale. Did the relative low cost of ink and paper possibly also contribute to the production of art that could be easily distributed? Curator: Precisely! The relatively cheap nature of the medium would potentially allow him to distribute this art freely amongst his working-class contemporaries. The piece might serve to memorialize this demographic, imbuing them with beauty and poise using relatively commonplace materials. Do you think this is something Foujita may have been conscious of when making art, based on this example? Editor: I hadn’t thought of it that way, but now that you mention it, that seems very probable given the materials, his technique, and the subject of the artwork! Thank you, that's given me a lot to consider.