Female image 1975

Hryhorii Havrylenko made this portrait with ink on paper, and what strikes me is the economy of it, how much he achieves with so few lines. It’s almost like a coloring book, but instead of feeling unfinished, it feels essential. The texture comes entirely from the line work, hatching that gives form to the face and clothing, and the weight of the ink varies just enough to create a sense of depth. The way the lines curve and follow the contours of the figure, especially in the face and around the shoulders, is masterful. See that small group of lines just under the lip, those vertical marks that sit perpendicular to the horizontal line of the mouth, they could be anything: shadow, wrinkles, stubble. This reminds me a little of Picasso’s line drawings, that same confidence and simplicity. Like Picasso, Havrylenko suggests a whole world with the bare minimum, a testament to the power of suggestion in art. It's not about what's there, but what's evoked.