Studie af to stående figurer, næsten identiske med figurer i kunstnerens maleri "Elskov, opus I", 1915 1913 - 1914

In 1915, J.A. Jerichau made this drawing with ink and watercolour of two standing figures. I can imagine Jerichau in his studio, quickly sketching with fluid lines that capture the essence of human forms. It's like he’s trying to catch something fleeting, a moment of connection between these figures. The palette is muted, mostly monochrome with touches of colour, which gives the figures a ghostly, ethereal quality. The strokes are confident, almost reckless, but that’s what makes it sing. Look at the way he’s rendered the limbs – a few deft strokes, and suddenly there’s movement, there’s weight. The figures almost seem to reach out to each other. I’m reminded of other painters—Rodin, maybe—who explored the raw energy of the human body. Jerichau, like them, seems to be searching for something beyond mere representation. It’s like he’s saying that painting isn’t just about what we see, but what we feel, what we intuit. The best paintings invite us into that dance of uncertainty and possibility, and that’s why they continue to resonate.