Zittend meisje met een doek over het hoofd 1750 - 1809

This drawing, made by David Alphonse de Sandoz-Rollin in the 18th century, is a quick sketch done in pen and brown ink on paper. The artist has used a minimal amount of materials to create a lively image of a seated girl tending to her goats. The sketchiness of the line work is due to the artist's choice of a relatively fast and direct method of applying ink with a pen, capturing the essence of the scene. You can almost see the girl moving and breathing and the goats milling about as the artist has given a sense of light and depth, using hatching and cross-hatching to create shadows and suggest forms. This humble drawing reminds us that the most direct techniques, combined with careful observation, can often be the most affecting. It challenges the idea that only highly finished works can have great impact. It's the artist's eye and hand, using such simple tools, that makes this image so compelling.