Family of acrobats 1905

This drawing of a family of acrobats was made by Pablo Picasso, though the materials used are not specified. I love the way the image emerges tentatively from the blank page. There’s a real sense of searching here, of something coming into being, like a Polaroid slowly developing. The figures are built up from delicate, almost hesitant lines. Look how the figures huddle together, emerging from a grey wash of ink or watercolour. The sketchy quality gives them a ghostly presence, as if they are memories or figments of the imagination. And the blank space surrounding the group creates a feeling of isolation, as if they are performing for an unseen audience. The sensitivity and vulnerability of this work reminds me of Goya. They both use the language of art to explore the darker side of human experience, but with a kind of tenderness.