Cosmetics 1951

Tsuguharu Foujita made this line drawing, called 'Cosmetics,' with ink on paper. It looks like a bustling beauty salon scene. The first thing I notice is how the ink varies – thick in some places, wispy in others. See the looping lines in the crowd, they suggest movement. It’s like he's thinking out loud with his pen. Foujita isn't trying to hide the process; it's all right there, immediate and raw. I think of a drawing as a sculpture, it’s about the rhythm of the lines and the space it fills on the page. There’s a real energy in the way he’s captured the scene with such minimal means. He reminds me a little of David Hockney, in how he makes you feel like you’re right there in the room, observing life unfold. Art, for me, is about capturing a moment, an emotion, and letting it breathe on the page. It’s this constant dialogue with the world, interpreted through the artist's unique lens.