Jacobs kamp med englen 1905 - 1906

Oluf Hartmann made this drawing on paper with pencil; it's called "Jacob's Struggle with the Angel." Looking at the scribble marks here, I see the movement and energy of the figures wrestling. It makes me think about the labor of drawing, that constant back and forth, the trying and erasing, to get the image just right. I wonder, what was Hartmann thinking as he built up these layers of graphite, line by line? You know, it's interesting how a simple tool, like a pencil, can become a way to explore really complex ideas about struggle, faith, and the human condition. It reminds me that drawing and painting is about so much more than just representation, it's a way of thinking and feeling through the world. It feels related to the work of other artists who wrestled with angels—like Delacroix, maybe even Picasso. We're all in this ongoing conversation, adding our own marks to the story.