Nude Girl standing 1906

Paula Modersohn-Becker made this drawing of a standing nude girl with what looks like graphite on paper. It's a real study in simplicity, seeing just how much can be conveyed with a few lines. The texture is fascinating; the graphite marks are soft, almost powdery. It’s as if she lightly dusted the figure onto the page. The lines are transparent in that they reveal the paper beneath. There's an area of erasure around the figures’ right knee; you can almost feel the artist thinking, adjusting, and refining her vision right there on the surface. Modersohn-Becker was trying to capture something essential about form and presence, but like Van Gogh, who she knew and admired, there is a vulnerability in the work. They both have this raw, honest approach, stripping away the unnecessary to reveal the core of their subject. Art is a conversation, right? And this drawing feels like a deeply personal and thoughtful contribution.