drei Studienköpfe (Three Heads) [p. 19] 1944 - 1949

This unassuming sketchbook page hosts Max Beckmann's restless energy as he works out three heads, one on top of the other. You can see the artist searching with his pencil. I wonder what it was like for Beckmann to draw like this – to just let the lines flow and overlap. It’s kind of like doodling, but with a real intensity. The marks are all over the place, but they somehow come together to make these faces appear. It reminds me a little of some of Picasso's drawings, where he's just riffing and playing around with form. Like they're just trying to see what they can get away with. You can feel his mind working through the pencil marks, trying to nail down the essence of a person. It’s cool how artists can have these conversations across time, inspiring each other to push things further.