Melancholischer Kopf 1927 - 1928

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner made this print, 'Melancholischer Kopf,' sometime in his career, using woodcut techniques. Kirchner's mark making feels raw, direct, almost like he's wrestling with the wood itself. It's that kind of process, you know, where the struggle becomes part of the story. The stark contrast between black and white areas creates a palpable tension. Look at the woman's face – those deep, gouged lines that form her features. There's an immediacy, a kind of brutal honesty, like he's carving out emotion as much as image. The way the background is treated is interesting, too; these slanting marks give a sense of depth and enclosure, really heightening the subject's sense of melancholy. It reminds me a little of Munch, actually, in that sense of psychological intensity, that rawness. But Kirchner's got his own thing going on. His work never fails to spark something in me, a reminder that art is as much about the process as it is about the final image.