Abstract Composition (Female Image) 1962

Hryhorii Havrylenko made this image of a woman with ink on paper sometime in the mid twentieth century. The energy of the piece comes from the repetition of marks, scribbling lines that don’t quite resolve into a conventional picture but make a great image all the same. The marks have a real physicality to them, it feels like you could lift the individual lines off the page. The artist hasn’t laboured over it, it’s like he is letting the pen run wild. Look at the hatching around the face, notice how the marks become tighter and denser, creating tone and depth. The more I look at this, the more I think of Paul Klee, another artist who wasn’t afraid to let his pen wander. But of course, Havrylenko has his own unique vision. It’s like he’s saying, “Here’s a face, but it’s also a bunch of lines, take it or leave it.” And I’ll take it! Art is about exploration, not answers.