Reclining Nude (Nu entendu) 1923

Andre Dunoyer de Segonzac made this etching of a reclining nude, and it's all about line, line, line – a real process piece. You can see the way he’s built up the figure and the shadows with these tight, scratchy lines, almost like he's feeling his way around the form. Look at the density of the lines around her hip and thigh; that’s where he’s really digging in, creating depth and volume. The hatching marks create a tactile sense, you can almost feel the texture of the paper and the pressure of the etching tool. It reminds me of some of Lucien Freud’s etchings, in the way he uses line to explore the weight and physicality of the human form. Ultimately, it feels like Segonzac is inviting us to witness the act of creation itself, that beautiful, awkward, vulnerable space where the artist wrestles with the subject. It’s a reminder that art is never finished, only abandoned, and that meaning is always fluid and open to interpretation.