Susanne 1906

Oluf Hartmann made this painting, Susanne, with oil on canvas. It’s a small painting, and it's all about the brushstrokes, right? The process. You can see how he’s building up the forms with these short, choppy marks. The monochromatic palette, the stark contrast between light and shadow, gives it this dramatic intensity. Look at the way he’s rendered the figures – the raw physicality of the medium really comes through. It's like he's wrestling with the paint to capture the weight and vulnerability of the body. I’m drawn to the area around Susanne’s face, how the light catches her cheek and brow. It’s just a few strokes, but it conveys so much. Hartmann died young, but his approach reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker, who was also grappling with the figure in new ways at that time. It’s like they're both part of this conversation, pushing painting into new territories. And that’s what art’s all about, isn’t it?