Club Table (Tischgesellschaft) Possibly 1907

This print, "Club Table" by Emil Nolde, shows a group of men in what looks like a deeply etched, claustrophobic space. I think about the scraping and carving that must have been involved in its making. It feels like Nolde really wanted to dig into the scene. You know, get underneath the surface of what's going on. I imagine him thinking about the weight and density of these figures, their silence, and the unspoken things between them. The way their coats bunch up around them. There's this feeling of unease that comes from the darkness, the way their faces are rendered, and the closeness of the figures. It reminds me a bit of other German Expressionist artists, like Kirchner, who also used intense emotion and distorted forms. It makes you wonder about the artist's intention.