Figure Praying 1917

This is a woodcut called 'Figure Praying' by Max Pechstein. Look at these deep blacks cut into the pale paper, the pressure of the block leaving its mark. I imagine Pechstein wrestling with the wood, carving out these bold, angular shapes. The figure, caught in a moment of supplication, raises their hands to the heavens. What are they praying for? The heavy lines around the figure's eyes and mouth give a sense of desperation, or is it longing? I can almost feel the artist's hand moving across the surface, each line a deliberate choice, a risk taken. Pechstein, like many artists of his time, was fascinated by non-Western art. You can see the influence of African and Oceanic art in the simplified forms and the emphasis on expressive distortion. Artists are always looking, borrowing, and transforming. We are all in conversation. And ultimately, art is a form of prayer, a way of reaching out to something beyond ourselves.