Mower 1912

Kazimir Malevich’s ‘Mower’ is like a mechanical peasant, rendered in graphite. The whole image is built up from marks, a stippled effect made up of tiny strokes, all hatching and cross-hatching. This approach makes it evident that artmaking is a process of building up forms from marks, almost like the act of mowing itself. Malevich is playing with a limited palette, essentially greyscale. The surface has a material roughness, a kind of grainy texture. Take a look at the negative space around the figure, the background is built up of tiny strokes which contrast with the relative smoothness of the figure. The face and beard are more solid masses of graphite, creating a focal point, while the eyes and the mouth are reduced to the bare minimum. This drawing has a simplified, almost robotic quality, echoing his earlier Suprematist compositions, but with a human figure. Picasso, in his cubist portraits, explored similar ideas, breaking down the figure into geometric forms, but Malevich’s approach is less about fragmentation and more about distilling the essence of form. Malevich’s ‘Mower’ reminds us that art isn't about fixed meanings, but about the questions we ask and the new ways of seeing it opens up.