Kvindelig model, liggende på siden, rygvendt 1887 - 1940

Charles Alexandre Malfray made this drawing, ‘Kvindelig model, liggende på siden, rygvendt’, with graphite on paper. The way the lines are laid down—so tentative and searching—makes me think of a sculptor feeling around a form. You can see the artist mapping out the body, almost as if building it up from nothing. Look at the shoulder blade, how it curves with a delicate, almost hesitant touch. It reminds me that drawing is not just about what you see, but how you feel as you’re trying to capture something elusive. The texture of the paper comes into play here. You can see how the graphite catches on the surface, creating tiny variations in tone that give the figure a sense of depth and volume. You see hints of Rodin, maybe, that handling of light and shadow to suggest mass. It’s a timeless dialogue, and it makes you wonder what he might have gone on to create.