Anshutz on Anatomy 1912

John Sloan made this etching called Anshutz on Anatomy, and it looks like it was made sometime around 1909. You can really feel the process in the dark hatching marks he made to create this image. It's like he’s scratching into the surface to find the light. The whole image is built up from these tiny marks, a mass of lines that give it this lively, vibrating feel. Look at the way he renders the faces in the crowd. Each one is unique, but they're all just a few scribbled lines. There's a real energy to it, you can imagine him working quickly to capture the scene. Sloan was really interested in everyday life, and you can see that here. There's something about the way he captures the scene that reminds me of Daumier, especially in his focus on social observation and his use of caricature. It's like he’s saying something about art, science, and the human condition all at once, without giving us any easy answers.