Head of Ugi Battenberg c. 1916 - 1917

Curator: This drawing is “Head of Ugi Battenberg” created by Max Beckmann around 1916-1917. It’s currently held in the Städel Museum. Editor: My first thought is “intensity.” Those lines practically vibrate with it, don't they? I'm immediately struck by how much character and presence Beckmann coaxes out with just charcoal and paper. Curator: Absolutely. Beckmann’s approach here really throws convention aside. Notice the economy of line, yet it’s incredibly expressive. It is an illustration of raw honesty in the expressionistic style. He renders this striking figure—seemingly capturing his personality as he depicts his face. Editor: You can practically feel the weight of his brow, the determined jut of his chin. I can’t help but notice that the paper it’s on seems like something taken right out of a sketchbook. I wonder what else was around this portrait? Were these loose pages? Bound? Curator: That question gets at what feels truly modern here, which makes it fascinating. You are seeing how he worked. I can only imagine he might be working on something in his studio when this individual catches his attention—and there goes another great portrait. He seizes an individual quality—not just their look, but perhaps a spirit of resistance—it gets at a primal, untamed, almost unsettling character, right? Editor: Precisely! It is interesting how an incomplete rendering leaves space for us, the viewers. Curator: Yes, our imaginations leap into action to fill in the narrative and the surrounding world. It certainly evokes the chaos and unrest of the early 20th century, capturing not just a likeness but a mood. Editor: It really makes you ponder about the nature of portraits themselves, doesn't it? Not just who, but why and how. Beckmann gets down to basics here with such simple means. It is powerful how impactful that still feels. Curator: I'll agree there. There's a visceral energy in it that transcends time.