Stående nøgen kvinde, profil til højre, draperi i hånden 1949

This drawing of a standing nude woman, in profile, holding a drape, was made by Vilhelm Lundstrom with graphite on paper. Lundstrom’s approach to mark making is really interesting here. Look at how he uses these bold, confident lines to create a sense of form and depth. It’s like he’s carving out the figure from the blank page, reducing it to its bare essentials. The texture of the graphite is also really nice; it gives the drawing a kind of tactile quality, like you could reach out and touch it. I am especially drawn to the way Lundstrom handles the shading around the figure’s head and legs. It’s almost sculptural, the way he builds up these layers of graphite to create a sense of volume and weight. It reminds me a bit of Picasso, especially his early cubist drawings. Both artists share a similar interest in breaking down the human form into its basic geometric shapes. Like any good art, there is a conversational, ambiguous element to the image, it is a refreshing take on the classic nude.