Portret van Gerarda Antonia Maria Sluijter 1939

This drawing is by Henk Henriët, who made this portrait of Gerarda Antonia Maria Sluijter with black chalk on paper. The whole thing has a soft, blended quality, like a hazy memory or a dream. You can really see the hand of the artist in the way he layers the chalk, building up the tones to create a real sense of depth. Looking at it, I'm drawn to the area around the hand that's touching her face. There's something so tender and intimate about the way the artist has rendered the delicate curve of her cheek, the soft folds of her skin. It's like the hand is a kind of mask, shielding her from the world. You can almost feel the weight of her thoughts, the weight of her emotions. It reminds me a little of Käthe Kollwitz's prints, that same sense of vulnerability and quiet strength. It's that feeling of seeing the world in all its complexity, embracing the ambiguity, and letting it all sink in.