Dr. Charles Hawkins - Inventor, Research Specialist 1943

This drawing of Dr. Charles Hawkins, inventor and research specialist, is by Charles Alston. It's graphite, and it’s kind of interesting, because it has this newspaper illustration vibe, but also it's a portrait. The different zones of the drawing are like panels in a comic, each hatched with different densities to suggest volume, depth, and narrative. Take the portrait of Hawkins: see how Alston uses these tiny, tight marks to really capture his likeness, then loosens up in the other areas to tell us about his dimometer invention and his fire prevention work. It’s like he’s using different gears, speeding up and slowing down to let the story unfold. Alston was a master of observation; he was very skilled at drawing from life. You can see the influence of artists like Daumier in his approach. But beyond likeness, there’s also a deep sense of humanity in Alston’s work. It’s not just about what things look like, but how they feel.