I lost you 2010

Louise Bourgeois made this watercolour and ink drawing called ‘I lost you’. Immediately, I’m drawn to the intense blue wash, it’s like a bruise, or a memory fading at the edges. The way she lets the blue bleed into the paper is really interesting. It’s not about control, more about letting the medium do its thing, which is something I try to embrace in my own work. Look how the ink line struggles to contain the form, especially around the breasts and belly. There's a real tension between the fluidity of the watercolor and the starkness of the ink. Bourgeois’ work often deals with themes of loss, the body, and trauma. ‘I lost you’ connects to a drawing by Goya, ‘The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters’ where the body is distorted and vulnerable, speaking to the human condition and the monsters, or traumas that shape our lives. Both artists, in their own way, remind us that art is a place where ambiguity and multiple interpretations can coexist.