Poilu and German Prisoners c. 1914 - 1919

Jean-Louis Forain made this drawing called Poilu and German Prisoners, probably during or just after the First World War. Look at the tentative lines, the way the figures seem to emerge from the paper, it feels like the artist is trying to capture a fleeting moment, a memory perhaps. The drawing is all about the texture of the graphite on paper. It’s scratchy and raw, but also kind of tender, especially in the way the faces are rendered. See that figure in the background, how it's barely there? The artist uses these simple marks to give the impression of a human presence. It reminds me of how a sculptor might work with clay, building up form with their hands. The bag on the left is so great. It is just scribbled, but this lets it sit comfortably in the image, holding everything together, and giving the eye a place to rest. Forain reminds me of Kathe Kollwitz, both are artists who used a pared-back aesthetic to make powerful statements. Both show how art can be a process of searching, questioning, and bearing witness.