Anne in Shawl and Dark Glasses 1979

Avigdor Arikha made this drawing of Anne with charcoal and maybe a bit of crayon. Just look at those heavy marks. I can almost see him circling and smudging, trying to get the weight of the shawl just right. It's got that scratchy quality, like he’s really digging in to find the form, the dark glasses hinting at something hidden. I bet Arikha was thinking about the Old Masters while making this. There's a classical feel to the pose, but with this modern twist. Anne looks both present and distant. See how the charcoal kind of dissolves into the paper? It creates this lovely, hazy atmosphere. Drawing like this is a conversation, an exchange between the artist, the subject, and us, the viewers. It's never really finished, just a moment captured in time. It reminds me that we are all in an ongoing conversation, inspiring each other.