Sketch of a boy’s figure VIII 1925

Tadeusz Makowski made this sketch of a boy, likely in oil on canvas. The ochre and pink tones create a warm, almost nostalgic atmosphere, a kind of old world charm. You can really see the artist working through the problem of representing form with these dabs and strokes. Looking closely, the paint is applied in a way that feels both deliberate and spontaneous. There's a real honesty to the materiality here, where the canvas texture is visible and the brushstrokes are not overly blended. See that single, confident stroke that defines the side of the boy’s hat? It’s economical. There is a rawness to it, an immediate capturing of light and shadow. Makowski reminds me a little of Chaim Soutine, in the way he is able to find and exploit the inherent strangeness of figurative painting, giving us just enough information to trigger our own emotional response, but leaving plenty to the imagination. In art, uncertainty is opportunity.