Mijn keukenmeisje en mijn linnenmeisje 1901

Carl Larsson made this etching, "Mijn keukenmeisje en mijn linnenmeisje", sometime around 1901, and what strikes me about it is its emphasis on line. It’s not about color, tone or texture here, it's all about line, and the way Larsson uses it. Check out the lines of the clothes, the hatching on the face that creates shadows and depth. Line becomes form, and through it, we get the impression of a subject. Look how the energy of the mark-making, especially in the dress, helps convey the sense of this person as dynamic, alive. It’s like Larsson is suggesting that a person is not one thing but always in motion, a process. Larsson's choice to focus on line reminds me a bit of other graphic artists like Käthe Kollwitz, who used line to express powerful emotions and social commentary. Of course, Larsson had his own, very different concerns, but the principle is the same. Art isn't about fixed meanings; it’s about conversations and seeing the world in different ways.