begonnene Figurenstudie (Figural Sketch) [p. 45] 

Max Beckmann sketched this figural study with graphite on paper, a medium that allowed him to quickly capture his observations and ideas. Beckmann came of age in Imperial Germany, and lived through both World Wars. You can see a figure in a hat emerging from the page, rendered with swift, assured strokes, a mere suggestion of form. But consider this in relation to Beckmann’s wider body of work, where the circus, the stage, and the masquerade appear as recurring motifs. These are not simply figures, they are types, performing roles. Beckmann once said that art is "an imitation of creation." He understood it as an attempt to decode the mysteries of human existence. How can we see this sketch, with its light touch, as a step in a larger project of making sense of the world? Beckmann’s art is charged with a sense of the fragmented self, a concept that resonates deeply in our contemporary world. He was interested in the narratives we construct around ourselves, and how society shapes these narratives. This quick sketch reminds us that identity is always in process, always under construction.