Zwei Figuren (Two Figures) [p. 74] 1914 - 1915

Max Beckmann created this drawing, Zwei Figuren, with graphite on paper. The figures are intertwined, floating on the page. I imagine Beckmann quickly sketching, trying to get the figures down before they moved, before the thought disappeared. The marks remind me of some of Goya's drawings – urgent, restless. I imagine him hunched over a table, perhaps in a cafe, rapidly filling up the pages of his sketchbook. The process of drawing here feels like a philosophical inquiry. Beckmann is asking himself "What does it mean to be human?", "How do we relate to one another?" There's a real sense of searching, trying to understand the world, and his place within it. For me, looking at this work is like witnessing a private moment, a glimpse into the artist's inner thoughts. It reminds me that we, as artists, are all in conversation with one another, across time, inspiring each other's creativity. This simple sketch feels pregnant with possibilities and multiple meanings.