Vrouw met kort haar in profiel tegen een achtergrond van gestapelde rechthoeken Possibly 1943

Curator: This intriguing piece, currently housed in the Rijksmuseum, is titled "Vrouw met kort haar in profiel tegen een achtergrond van gestapelde rechthoeken," or "Woman with short hair in profile against a background of stacked rectangles." It’s believed to be from 1943 and created by Samuel Jessurun de Mesquita. Editor: My first thought is its starkness. The sharp lines, the restricted palette of pen and ink, there's a sense of restrained energy. A controlled yet insistent tension within the image. Curator: It's fascinating to consider this work within the context of Mesquita's life. As a Jewish artist during World War II, he faced increasing persecution. His eventual deportation and murder at Auschwitz undeniably shadows our understanding. Does this spare style reflect the limitations imposed on his life, his artistic practice? Or can we see a quiet resistance in this choice of form? Editor: Restricting to the form; that resonates deeply here. Look at how Mesquita creates volume simply with lines. The short hair, those stacked rectangles, they aren't just backdrop – they define the woman, confine her perhaps. Is it mere suggestion or bold strokes that shape our reading here? Curator: Exactly. The profile view is telling; averted, turned away. It speaks of the constraints, the societal expectations imposed, maybe the burden she carries of grief or fear. Yet it is interesting to read this in concert with feminist thinkers, is the female subject rendered here, flattened even, by formal representation of the profile, thus lacking full agency and interiority? Editor: I read it slightly differently. The stark lines make an interesting point here. Notice the geometric forms that underpin what we see as representation: could this possibly underscore a universal quality inherent in that particular subject in this unique set of conditions? Curator: Well, this drawing serves as a potent reminder of art's capacity to encapsulate both the personal and the universal dimensions of human experience under dire situations. It urges us to look deeper, beyond the aesthetics and beyond art history. Editor: I would conclude it leaves me captivated by the elegant efficiency and it’s that distilled essence of line. A powerful statement.