To kvinder slås om en mand 1906

Oluf Hartmann created this small etching, "Two Women Fight Over a Man," using closely hatched lines that build up to create dark tones. Imagine Hartmann hunched over a metal plate, using a sharp tool to incise these marks one by one. What thoughts preoccupied him as he meticulously worked, rendering this scene of physical conflict with such intensity? The raw energy of the figures, the palpable tension in their struggle, it feels like a suppressed scream. The way Hartmann uses the etching needle reminds me of Paula Modersohn-Becker, both artists searching for authenticity in their work. There's a kind of desperation here, a reaching for something raw and real. Artists are always wrestling with each other, grappling with ideas across time, inspiring each other's creativity in an ongoing exchange. The beauty of painting, and art in general, lies in its ambiguity, inviting us to explore multiple interpretations.