Dr. O. Kohnstamm 1915

Ernst Ludwig Kirchner made this lithograph titled 'Dr. O. Kohnstamm' in 1915 with ink on paper. It’s a portrait rendered in urgent black lines, like he's excavating the man's face, right? I think of Kirchner in his studio, pushing and pulling at the image, trying to find the essential form. It's like he's not just drawing a portrait but trying to understand what makes Kohnstamm tick. The diagonal scratches feel so raw, each one a little revelation of form. Look at the way he uses the white of the paper to define Kohnstamm’s nose – it’s almost sculptural. Kirchner's work reminds me of painters like Munch, who used similar techniques to get at something deeper than just the surface of things. When I look at this portrait I think about the work of other artists. We are all in constant conversation across time, inspiring each other's creativity. We all embrace ambiguity.