drawing, paper, watercolor, ink
drawing
landscape
figuration
paper
watercolor
ink
sketch
expressionism
monochrome
Ernst Ludwig Kirchner made this watercolor and pencil drawing, Life (Gujer Design), with a light palette of greens, blues, and reds. I imagine the artwork came into being through layering, shifting, and emerging through trial, error, and intuition. I feel for Kirchner here, I can imagine him thinking about the materiality of paint, the texture, and the surface as he made this; and I imagine that thinking shaped his experience. Look at that one black gesture that seems to cascade down the right side of the composition, doesn't it communicate a feeling, an intention? To me, it feels like controlled chaos. This piece is definitely in conversation with other painters; artists are always in an ongoing exchange of ideas across time, inspiring one another’s creativity. It feels very expressive and raw. Painting, for me, is a form of embodied expression, a way of understanding my place in the world. I think Kirchner may have been on a similar journey here, with a desire to embrace ambiguity and uncertainty.
Comments
In the 1920s, Kirchner’s works began to exhibit an increasingly ornamental organization of the surface. This “carpet style” had emerged in part from his productive collaboration with the weaver Lise Gujer (1893–1967), whose acquaintance he had made in Davos in 1921. Gujer wove more than thirty textile works after designs by Kirchner, among them the carpet "Life" (Städel Museum, Inv. Nr. 2111) commissioned by Carl Hagemann (1867–1940). The artist made several preparatory drawings for the scene. The earliest version, the Gujer Design, already features the depictions of the cattle drive and the path of life that would dominate the final composition (Städel Museum, Inv. No. 17768).
Join the conversation
Join millions of artists and users on Artera today and experience the ultimate creative platform.
CollectMore like this
