Siddende klovn med hat, vendt mod venstre. 1908 - 1909

Othon Friesz made this drawing of a clown in an unknown year with what looks like a soft graphite pencil. The marks are tentative, like a search for the subject, and the lines don't commit too much, giving it a provisional, unfinished feel. I love the way the hatching on the left leg is both descriptive and abstract, like a kind of nervous energy radiating from the form. It reminds me of some of Picasso's early figure drawings, where the line seems to dance and vibrate on the page. The economy of means is also striking: with just a few strokes, Friesz captures the essence of this melancholy clown. It is a really lovely little sketch, capturing a fleeting moment of human expression with such sensitivity and grace. It shows how drawing can be more about the process of looking and feeling than about achieving a perfect likeness.