Carnaval 1918

Léon Spilliaert’s drawing presents a scene brimming with masked figures and clowns. Its muted pencil lines create a sense of distance and unreality, like a memory or a dream. The composition divides into foreground and background, each densely populated yet distinctly rendered. In the foreground, we find an assortment of characters. Their forms are only loosely defined, hinting at the elaborate costumes and grotesque masks associated with carnival. Above, silhouetted figures dance or perhaps fall on a vast, open plane, evoking a sense of joyous abandon and societal inversion. The horizon line, punctuated by bare trees and a distant building, provides a spatial anchor, yet the overall effect is one of estrangement. This drawing is not just a representation of a festive event, but an exploration of psychological states, using the structure of the composition and the ambiguity of its forms to destabilize our understanding of social rituals. Ultimately, the image challenges us to look beyond the surface of things.