Landscape with Tree Trunk 1922 - 1924

Edvard Munch made this little landscape sketch on paper, with what looks like a purple wax crayon. I love how immediate it feels, like he just grabbed whatever was at hand and jotted down what he saw. It's a very pared-down scene, with a strong vertical tree trunk anchoring the composition. You can almost feel the pressure of his hand as he laid down those crayon lines, building up the form of the tree and the horizontal plane of the water. It makes you think about what he was thinking at the time. Was he trying to capture a specific mood or feeling? Was this a study for a larger painting? This reminds me a bit of Guston's late drawings, in the sense of immediacy. It's amazing how much information and emotion can be conveyed with just a few simple marks.