Udkast til "Kristus velsigner de små børn" 1937 - 1938

Niels Larsen Stevns made this pen and ink drawing, "Udkast til 'Kristus velsigner de små børn'," and you can just imagine him sketching, pausing, and then rapidly adding more lines. I love the nervous energy of the marks, like quick seismographic notations of people and their relationships. You can feel Stevns' urgency and freedom as he tries to capture the essence of the scene. Look at the repetitive, parallel marks that conjure the crowd, each line full of intention but also, wonderfully, a kind of shorthand. He's not trying to show us everything; instead, he lets the rhythm of the marks suggest form, volume, and the presence of many bodies gathered together. I see how this work relates to other drawings I’ve seen where artists use line to explore the dynamics of a crowd or an intimate encounter. Stevns inspires me – he reminds me that drawing and painting is a form of inquiry, a way of seeing and thinking that’s always open to surprise.