Drie vrouwen uit Afrika en twee matrozen 1925

André Lhote made this print, Drie vrouwen uit Afrika en twee matrozen, using black ink on paper. The bold lines and stark contrast create a really dynamic composition. It’s like he's carving the scene directly into our minds. Lhote's graphic style reminds me how much mark-making is about a physical process, the push and pull of the tool against the surface. Look at how he uses dense, parallel lines to create shadows and textures, almost like a topographical map. The geometry gives structure to the palm trees and waves, while the black outlines around the figures really pop. There's this fascinating dialogue between flatness and depth, abstraction and representation. It makes me think of Fernand Léger's work, where the everyday becomes monumental through simplification and strong outlines. Ultimately, Lhote's print shows us how an image can be both a window and a wall, inviting us to look deeper while reminding us of its own constructed nature.