Liebespaar 1914 - 1918

Otto Mueller made this lithograph called *Liebespaar*, or *Lovers*, sometime in the early part of the 20th century. I imagine him hunched over a stone, wrestling with a greasy crayon, coaxing forth these two figures from a dark ground. The image is stark, almost brutal, with its rough, hewn marks. See how the lines that form the woman's body are so different from those that describe the background? Her body is rendered with a delicate touch, almost tentative, while the space around her is a flurry of chaotic energy. I wonder if Mueller was thinking about Gauguin or even the German Expressionist, Kirchner, when he made this. There’s a similar sense of longing and alienation. But look closer. Isn't there also a tenderness here? The way the figures lean into each other, their forms merging into a single, unified shape... It’s like they’re seeking solace in each other, finding a brief moment of connection amidst the chaos of the world. That’s what art can do, isn't it? Show us the beauty and the pain, side by side.