Henry's Acrobats c. 1935 - 1943

Claire Mahl Moore made this drawing, "Henry's Acrobats," using ink on paper; it’s a real balancing act of lines, weight, and abstraction. The marks here have a tentative quality; lines are searching, and the shading is smudgy, almost like she’s feeling her way through the composition. It’s like watching her think on paper, a process of constant adjustment and revision. I like how the repeated lines give a sense of movement, as if the acrobats are constantly shifting their positions. The way she’s handled the ink gives a real sense of depth and volume, especially in the shadows. I’m drawn to the figure at the bottom, the way the body is constructed from simple geometric shapes, almost like a Cubist sculpture. It reminds me a bit of Picasso’s drawings, that same playful deconstruction of the human form. Like Picasso, Moore invites us to see the world in new and unexpected ways, where ambiguity and multiple interpretations are not a weakness but a source of strength.