Study of a nude female figure (Satyress) 1905 - 1908

This study of a nude female figure was made by Auguste Rodin, using graphite on paper. Look at how the nude emerges from a wild tangle of marks, like she's materializing out of smoke. You can almost feel Rodin circling the figure, the pressure of the graphite stick varying as he searches for the form. I imagine him stepping back, squinting, then diving in again, his hand a flurry of energy. See how the hatching both defines and dissolves the edges, blurring the boundary between the figure and the ground. It reminds me of de Kooning's drawings – that same restless line, that constant probing and questioning. You can feel the artist thinking, feeling, seeing all at once. It's a raw and intimate record of a creative mind at work. And somehow, in all that searching, he reveals something essential about the human form, its beauty, and its inherent mystery. It's like Rodin is saying, "Here, look, we're all just bundles of energy, constantly shifting and changing, but still, somehow, ourselves."