Sketch of a Seated Woman; verso: Sketch of a Human Head 19th-20th century

Editor: This is William Valentine Schevill's "Sketch of a Seated Woman," a delicate pencil drawing. It feels very intimate, like a fleeting glimpse. What strikes you about it? Curator: The immediacy highlights the labor of creation. See the visible pencil strokes, the artist's hand at work? It's less about the subject and more about the act of drawing itself, the materiality of the graphite on paper. Editor: So you see the value in the process? Curator: Precisely. And consider the social context: who had access to these materials? Who was encouraged to depict the human form? This sketch offers a window into the art-making process as a form of work. Editor: That’s a very different perspective than I expected, but I see what you mean. Thank you!