Sheet of Sketches: Men, Women and Cats (recto); Sheet of Sketches: Men and Women (verso) 1879 - 1923

This sheet of sketches of men, women, and cats was made by Théophile Alexandre Steinlen. It's just blue lines on paper, a real glimpse into the artist's process. There's a directness, a kind of immediacy in the blue lines that I find really appealing. You can see how Steinlen is working things out, moving from one figure to the next, almost like he's thinking aloud on the page. The marks are so simple, but they capture something essential about each of the figures: a stance, a posture, an expression. Look at the way he's drawn the cats, how the lines capture their movement and energy with just a few strokes. It reminds me that art isn't always about perfection or finished results, it's about exploration and discovery. Think of other artists who adopt a similar approach, like Daumier, who also liked to capture everyday life with a similar sense of humour and social observation. It's all about the ongoing conversation, right?