Schlafende 1922

Karl Hofer made this print, Schlafende, with lithography. The image is built from stark contrasts and bold strokes, a study in black and white that really digs into the process of image-making. It feels like he's pulling back the curtain to show us how a sleeping figure emerges from a flurry of lines. Check out the way the ink pools and spatters around the lower edge of the print. Those incidental marks, they're not mistakes, they're like whispers of the artist’s hand. They make me think of Paula Modersohn-Becker, another German artist who wasn't afraid to leave the mess of art-making visible. What does the piece tell us about how we see and understand the world? Is it fixed and certain, or full of delightful surprises? It makes you think.