Nude Female Torsos c. 1925

John B. Flannagan made this brush and ink drawing of nude female torsos on paper. It’s such a quick and confident drawing, isn't it? Look at how he uses a bold, black line to define these figures. It feels like he’s trying to capture something essential, something about the way the body occupies space. I wonder what he was thinking about when he made this? Was he interested in some kind of classical ideal, or was he just exploring the sheer physicality of the human form? You know, it reminds me a little bit of Matisse, but with a kind of raw, earthy quality that’s all Flannagan’s own. It’s amazing how a few simple marks can convey so much. It just shows you that the conversation of art is ongoing. We all pick up the brush, or whatever our medium is, and add our own voice to it. And that’s how art keeps moving, changing, surprising us.