Hang the signboard 1922

This is Hang the Signboard by Boris Kustodiev, made using what looks like ink on paper. The scratchy lines make me think of process, like he's thinking out loud with his pen. I really like how he's built up the scene using just these little marks. Look at the roof of the house – it's all these tiny, broken lines, but together they give you this sense of a heavy, snow-covered surface. And then there’s the lettering on the sign, how it seems to pop out against the dark background, almost like a separate element pasted on. It makes me think about the physicality of the medium, the way the ink sits on the page. You can almost feel the pressure of his hand as he drew each line. It’s interesting to think about Kustodiev’s other work, which is often so colorful and full of life, and then to see this more restrained, almost graphic piece. It reminds me of someone like Käthe Kollwitz, who also used black and white to such powerful effect, conveying a sense of stark reality. Ultimately, it's this contrast, this tension between simplicity and depth, that makes the piece so compelling.