Studieblad med mandsportræt og Atlasfigur 1907

This is a drawing called Studieblad med mandsportræt og Atlasfigur by Karl Isakson. Look at these charcoal lines swirling around the man’s portrait and that Atlas figure straining under the weight of the world. You can almost see Isakson’s hand moving quickly, trying to catch an idea before it disappears. I think maybe he was thinking about the burden of existence, about how we all carry something heavy with us. The drawing feels like a rehearsal, a way of trying out different ideas and poses, like he’s searching for the right way to express something deeply felt. The Atlas figure has been a figure that has been used by many artists throughout the history of art. It makes me wonder about my own process, and how much of art-making is just showing up and being willing to wrestle with the material. I hope that his drawings encourage us to embrace the messy, uncertain parts of the creative journey.