Gymnast 1912

Eugène Jansson made this drawing, Gymnast, in 1912, using colored chalk. The marks here are what I would call directional, or maybe even organizational. There is a real sense of the making process. Look at how the chalk strokes follow the contours of the gymnast’s body, giving it volume and form, but also a kind of raw vulnerability. The color palette is muted – a mix of grays, browns, and pale pinks – which adds to the sense of quiet intensity. Notice the area around the gymnast’s torso: the lines are more concentrated here, creating a denser, more textured surface. It’s almost as if Jansson is using the medium to explore the physicality of the human body. You can see a similar approach in the work of Paula Modersohn-Becker, another artist who was interested in capturing the body’s weight and presence through simple, direct mark-making. Art is always a conversation, right?